


Surviving Aincrad

by NephChampion



Series: The Moon's Flash Princess [1]
Category: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (Anime & Manga), Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Don’t copy to another site
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-10-19
Packaged: 2019-10-20 10:22:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 39
Words: 194,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17620676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NephChampion/pseuds/NephChampion
Summary: Asuna used to be a normal girl. But that was before she was trapped in the Death Game Sword Art Online. She, along with the mysterious Beta Tester Kirito must stick together to not just clear the game but pick up the pieces of their broken lives after the game is finally beaten. And then, when they find a talking cat and are attacked, their complicated love life just gets even worse.





	1. Prologue: Aria of a Starless Night

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own SAO or Sailor Moon.
> 
> This is an Alternate Universe.

(Aria of a Starless Night)  
  
She was like a shooting star, that was the first thing that went through Kirito’s head the first time he’d seen Asuna in the first floor dungeon of Aincrad in the game of Sword Art Online.  
  
The blade of her rapier was so fast that even his eyes hadn’t been able to follow, it was just a blur. Of course, at the time he hadn’t known that the Player was a girl but the speed and precision of her strikes had been enough to make the ex-Beta Tester stop and stare.  
  
The cloaked Fencer had been something out of a dream, what with the graceful way she seemed to dance around the Kobold. He only snapped out of his stupor when the mob disintegrated into the fractals of light and noticed the way she wobbled instead of standing tall.  
  
“Oi,” he called softly so as not to startle the other, “Are you ok?”  
  
He raised his hands in front of himself, fingers splayed wide when the other turned, rapier up and ready to strike. He watched with baited breath as the other panted for a moment before sliding the rapier away expertly.  
  
“What do you want?” she spat irritably, stalking forward. Then she, because her voice was soft and feminine despite the anger, stiffened and fell in a dead faint.  


**< <>>**

  
He sighed as he looked down into her face. Her hood had fallen off her head as he’d moved them to the nearby Safe Zone in the dungeon. She was mesmerizing, with a soft elegant curve to her high cheek bones and long dark lashes. Her long hair was soft and a beautiful amber color.  
  
He wondered what her name was as he leaned back against the wall, gently playing with her hair as her head rested in his lap. How was he going to justify this to her? She was amazingly skilled, or so it seemed, but he could tell that her [Linear] was not doing as much damage as it should, since she was here in the Tower, her level had to be near his own.  
  
Kirito looked into the upper left hand corner of his vision; his own level was 12 so she had to be at least level 10. And if she was allocating her skill points correctly, she should not need to use her Sword Skills to Over Kill the mobs. Maybe she was a newer Player to games? That might explain why she was Over Killing the Kobolds with [Linear] instead of using normal sword moves.  
  
He stopped running his fingers through her soft, soft hair when he heard her stir and felt her head move in his lap. He pulled his hands away as her eyes slowly blinked open, revealing the color of her eyes.  
  
He felt as if his breath had been stolen when she turned her soft amber eyes to stare into his own ebony gaze. “G-good morning,” he stuttered.  
  
She sat up in a flash, “What happened!”  
  
“You passed out,” he managed to reply evenly, he could feel his heart pounding. “H-how long have you been in here?” He wasn’t sure how he’d kept his voice so steady.  
  
“Four days.” Her eyes narrowed, “Why did you help me?”  
  
He held up his hands in surrender again, “I was only doing what anyone would,” he muttered, turning his eyes to look into his lap as he tried to hide the faint blush on his cheeks.  
  
“You’re wrong.”  
  
His head snapped up and their eyes met again. “What?”  
  
She shook her head, “No one would have helped me, they’d have left me to die.”  
  
He took offence to that, “In this Death Game no they would not have.” He blushed, looking to the side as his cheeks burned, “The unspoken rule is not to let any other Player’s HP drop to zero.”  
  
“What were you doing here anyway?”  
  
He lowered his head, shoulders slumping, “Looking for the Boss Room.” Kirito sighed, pulling his knees to his chest, “I feel so stupid…”  
  
“Why?” she put her hand over one of his.  
  
He looked up almost shyly, “On the first day I told a newbie that I’d been training that we’d already be on floor ten by now.”  
  
She scooted over to sit shoulder to shoulder with him, “Why would you say something like that?”  
  
His slight blush darkened, “I’m a Beta Tester, and the tenth floor was how high we’d climbed in the two month long Beta Test.” He turned to look her in the eye, “Why are you in here?”  
  
“Because I want to be myself.”  
  
He blinked in confusion, waiting for her to continue. “Be yourself?”  
  
It was her turn to look away with a red face, “I spent the first week crying my eyes out in an inn in the [Town of Beginnings]. In the end I decided that if I was going to die in this world that I would die as myself. That I wouldn’t let this game beat me.” She pulled her knees to her chest, mimicking his posture, “So, I bought a bunch of Iron Rapiers and came here.”  
  
He bit his lip as he thought about what to say to that, “Have you, have you ever played any games before this one?”  
  
Her face darkened, “I don’t,” she paused, “Usually play games, I’ve played the games that are on smart phones, but I’m using my brother’s NerveGear and copy of SAO.”  
  
“Have you distributed your Skill Points?”  
  
“Skill Points? What are those?” she looked adorably confused.  
  
He stared. No way, he was dealing with a total n00b? She had so much talent! He took a deep breath, “Open your Menu.”  
  
She blinked at him uncomprehendingly.  
  
He gave her a smile, “Beta Tester remember?” he poked her shoulder almost playfully, “Don’t worry; I’m going to help you.”  
  
Silently, she raised her hand, pointer and index fingers extended and brought them down to bring up her menu.  
  
“Ok, make it visible to me too, you should be able to do that by going into the [Options] menu and selecting, [System].”  
  
She nodded, navigating her menu.  
  
“Once there, you should see a [Share Status] option, you need to check that.”  
  
She found it at the very bottom of the list and a second later he leaned closer, to get a better look.  
  
He leaned his head back and groaned.  
  
“Is there a problem?” she growled.  
  
Her Skill Points, she hadn’t allocated any of them at all. On the bright side she was at a higher level than he’d thought: 11.  
  
“You have 33 Attribute points and 22 Skill Points,” he pointed to her menu, “See the + next to all your attributes?”  
  
She nodded uncertainly, “What about them?”  
  
“Clicking on each of them will raise that attribute by however many times you press the + next to each,” he looked her up and down, “You have an Agility build, so, you should put 2 points into AGI for every point you put into STR.”  
  
She blushed, “Ok.” She grumbled as she started playing around with her stats.  
  
He stopped her, “Every other level you should put one point into DEF, because no one wants to be a Glass Cannon.”  
  
She looked up at him, “Glass Cannon?”  
  
Kirito smiled, “It means that you can dish out damage, but you can’t take any hits yourself or you die.”  
  
She nodded hesitantly, paling at the thought of actually dying before dumping a bunch of points in her defense stat before pulling her hand away. “How’s this?”  
  
Her stats, which had once been all 15, were now much better. Her STR was nearing 30 as was her DEF and her AGI was just passed it at 31.  
  
Kirito nodded in satisfaction. “That’s much better, just remember, every other level from now on you need to put one point in STR, DEF and AGI instead of two in AGI and one in STR.”  
  
She leaned against his shoulder, nodding. “What about the other points?”  
  
“As you work on your skills you will get better at them,” Kirito replied, eyeing her Skills. Rapier and Parry. “Putting points into your skills allows you to master them faster. For now, I’d suggest not allocating any of them.”  
  
“Why?”  
  
“The points allow you to master skills faster yes?” Kirito looked down at her.  
  
She bit her lip, “Yes.” She understood that at least.  
  
“I suggest you use them on skills that are not immediately useful, such as Cooking or Tailoring.” Kirito shrugged, “Not that it matters yet, since you only have two slots available.”  
  
She closed her menu. “Now what?”  
  
Kirito looked up at the ceiling, “Well, tomorrow there’s going to be a meeting, not sure about what it will be though.” He stood, “You’ve spent all your time in here?”  
  
“What of it?” she muttered, taking his offered hand.  
  
“Have you eaten or slept at all?”  
  
She shook her head, “Why would I need to?”  
  
He sighed, “We need sleep, even in a game like this.” He turned to face her, “Had you collapsed like that and I wasn’t there you’d have died.”  
  
Her shoulders slumped her eyes down turned. He was right, and she knew it.  


**< <>>**

  
She followed him all the way back to Tolbana, “Why did you help me?”  
  
Kirito turned his head, “Why are you asking me that again?”  
  
She glared.  
  
“Ok, fine,” he took a deep breath, “It was partly for your map data, why?”  
  
“I’ve heard bad things about the Beta Testers; that they don’t care about the rest of us.”  
  
She bit her lip, “But I don’t believe that. How can they say things like that about you when you went out of your way to teach me how to make myself stronger?”  
  
He smiled, “You’re very kind, Miss Fencer, but you’ll find that most Beta Testers are just what they say they are.” Then, he seemed to remember something, “Here, this dropped for me a while back, just before I found you.”  
  
He opened his menu and navigated it expertly, materializing a Rapier. “This is the Wind Fleuret, as a monster drop it’s much better than those Iron Rapiers you have now.”  
  
She took it, “Are you sure?”  
  
He grinned, “I have no use for it as I use One Handed Long Swords like this Anneal Blade +6.”  
  
“+6?”  
  
“You can upgrade and fix your equipment if you go to a Blacksmith.”  
  
She had nothing to say to that as they stopped by a vender and bought some Black Bread. She didn’t really like it, it was tasteless and hard, “How can you eat this?”  
  
The Beta Tester grinned as he pulled something from a pocket, “I usually change it up a bit with this.” This was a small clay jar that looked like it held… something.  
  
“What is it?” she looked up at him.  
  
“Go on,” he gestured and she tapped the top hesitantly.  
  
She looked dubious as she touched her glowing fingertip to her piece of bread. “Is this cream?”  
  
He nodded, spreading some on his own and taking a bite. The jar, out of uses and now at durability 0 shattered into fractals of light.  
  
The fencer nibbled at the bread; then she found she couldn’t eat it fast enough. With nothing better to do she watched her Beta Tester companion finish his own. “Are we going to the meeting now?”  
  
He chuckled, “It’s tomorrow remember? You can stay with me, my room has a bath.”  


**< <>>**

  
10:00 am the next morning found them both sitting slightly higher than the other players attending the meeting.  
  
Her hood once again hiding her pretty face, the fencer yawned widely, covering her mouth with a dainty hand. Even with all the sleep she’d gotten in her companion’s comfortable bed she hadn’t yet recovered from four days of almost not sleeping at all.  
  
Kirito gave her an easy smile as he handed over a Guide Book, “Newest edition, it has in here what we remember of the first Floor Boss.”  
  
She took it, blinking sleepily as it fell open to the right chapter, “Thank you.”  
  
“Did you get enough sleep last night?”  
  
“I got seven hours,” She shot back, “I’m fine!”  
  
He raised his hands in surrender, “If you say so.”  
  
Down below the one who’d called the meeting called it to order. “Settle down,” he called.  
  
Kirito perked up slightly, letting Miss Fencer lean on him tiredly, “This should be if, if he’s found the Boss Room then we can finally move on and prove that we can beat this boss.”  
  
“I am Diavel,” the Player dressed as a knight declared. “And I’ve rolled Knight.”  
  
A smile tugged at the fencer’s mouth, “There aren’t classes in this game are there?”  
  
“No, he’s just trying to get rid of the tension in the air.”  
  
“Did it work,” she asked around another yawn.  
  
“I’d say so,” they could hear the laughter of the other Players.  
  
Diavel the knight gestured for quiet, “Yesterday we found the boss room.”  
  
There was a stony silence as the players went dead silent. They wanted to know about the boss. The meeting went on for a few more minutes before Diavel was rudely interrupted by another Player.  
  
“Hang on a minute!” Another Player was standing on the top floor of the small open aired theater. “I have something I want to say before we get too deep into boss details.”  
  
The young man with spikey orange hair stomped down the stairs, glaring at every one he passed.  
  
The pure rage painted on his face caused many to step back to make sure they were not in his way. Even Kirito and the girl he was with felt shivers of unease when he caught their eyes. Kirito narrowed his eyes and took a step forward, partly hiding the new player, who didn’t deserve that much hate directed at her, from the eyes of this new person.  
  
He walked up to Diavel, who backed up a bit to give him the stage.  
  
He turned to the would-be Raid Group, “The name’s Kibaou.” He took a deep breath, “And I want to say that all the Beta Testers should hand over all their equipment and money and beg for our forgiveness!”  
  
The fencer placed a hand on Kirito’s shoulder, it was rock hard. She could see him gnashing his teeth angrily. “He’s not talking about you, right?” she asked.  
  
“He’s making generalizations when he shouldn’t,” he looked over his shoulder, “of the 2,000 dead, if every Beta Tester was logged in, I’d say, 20 percent of those he mourns are Beta Testers.”  
  
“Do you have a number?”  
  
“According to my friend Argo, 800 of us were logged in that first day.”  
  
He turned to glare down at the man, “There are maybe, _maybe_ 400 of us left, at _most_.”  
  
She gasped almost silently. She leaned into his back in a show of silent support. She owed him her life, “What will you do if you get outed?”  
  
“I don’t know.”  
  
He wanted to say something but speaking to all the people here scared the shit out of him. Normally he wasn’t very good at talking to anyone, so he was very surprised that he found talking to the fencer at his back so easy.  
  
“Excuse me,” called a tall black player, standing up.  
  
Kibaou gave him the stink eye, “Yeah?”  
  
“Name’s Agil,” the big player loomed over Kibaou.  
  
“You picked up one of these, right?” Agil pulled a copy of the book Kirito had just handed to his companion.  
  
Kibaou grimaced, “What of it?”  
  
“This is all the knowledge the Beta Testers have on this floor. It was sold to new players for free in the item shops,” Agil turned.  
  
“The Beta Testers did their best to give us this information, and yet 2,000 Players still died.”  
  
Kibaou, sufficiently cowed, harrumphed and sat down, Agil sitting next to him to keep the smaller man in line.  
  
Kirito breathed a sigh of relief as he and the fencer also sat back down.  
  
She turned her eyes back to the guidebook, to read along if need be.  
  
“It is called Illfang the Kobold Lord, he has an axe and a shield to start with,” Diavel paused, looking over the crowd to see if they were following so far. “Once we get it to the red its attack pattern will change and it’ll pull out a Talwar.”  
  
He closed the book, “That’s it, dismissed!” he smiled, “We will be tackling the Boss in two days.”  
  
Diavel turned to leave before remembering something, “Before I forget: Please divide yourselves into parties of six.” He left.  


**< <>>**

  
Kirito stretched, opening his menu, “Since you’ve been following me, do you want to party up?”  
  
The girl looked down at his invitation, “Un,” she smiled, accepting. Then she yawned again.  
  
Kirito smiled, his eyes narrowing as he checked out the second HP bar that had appeared under his own, Asuna?  
  
Truly, that was a pretty name for possibly the prettiest girl in the game. He relaxed as Asuna leaned into his side; she seemed ready to drift off again. “Would you like to go back to our room or train for a while first?”  
  
“I’m fine right here,” she mumbled, falling asleep again.  
  
Kirito chuckled quietly as he carefully maneuvered her head back into his lap; plucking up the Guide Book from her hands he checked the section himself.  
  
While it was indeed accurate to what happened in the Beta, Devs often changed things between a Beta Test and the Finished Product.  
  
“I’m not sure we should put so much stock in this information anymore,” he trailed off, resting his chin in one hand. “What if something’s changed?”  
  
“What’cha doing, Kii-bou?”  
  
Kirito blanched, bringing a hand to his mouth. Doing his best to stay relaxed, he turned to look at the person who had appeared behind him out of nowhere, “Argo.”  
  
Argo, [The Rat] grinned, dropping to sit next to him, “So?” her eyes slid over Asuna’s resting form, “Oh-ho…”  
  
She giggled, “What’s this Kii-bou, I thought you were a Solo Player,” she grinned widely, poking his shoulder.  
  
His face went bright red, “If you must know,” his tongue throbbed but he ignored it to chew his friend out, “When I found her in the Tower she passed out from mental exhaustion!”  
  
He looked down into Asuna’s sleeping face, “I’m going to be showing her the ropes for a while.” He turned to glare at the information broker, “Did you get a more solid number of how many of us Beta Testers are left?”  
  
[The Rat’s] shoulders slumped, “I was right, 400 was a generous estimate.”  
  
“I’m almost afraid to ask.”  
  
Argo leaned back, looking at the base of the Second Floor, high above their heads, “When I checked the [Monument of Life] yesterday,” she leaned heavily on his other shoulder, “The real number is closer to 250.”  
  
“250 of 800,” Kirito hissed, “I’d suspected that things had changed between the end of the Beta and now but.”  
  
Out of two thousand Players gone, “About 25 percent of the people that moron is mourning are the Beta Testers he’s accusing of leaving new Players in the lurch!” One of Kirito’s hands began playing with some of Asuna’s hair of its own violation; the other balled into a fist and shook. “And you’re sure there’s nothing we can do about this irrational hate?”  
  
Argo almost laughed, “I’m afraid not.” She looked at her friend out of the corner of her eye, “The best we would be able to do is redirect that hate to something else.”  
  
“And with the real culprit nowhere in sight,” He picked up her trailing thought, “It’ll have to be a Beta Tester willing to take the fall.”  
  
He closed his eyes, sighing.  
  
“So, what will you do if it comes to that?” Argo echoed Asuna’s question from earlier, turning to look into his dark eyes.  
  
“I’ll take the fall I guess,” his vision filled with Asuna’s, calm, peaceful face, “So that you and the rest can do your jobs of keeping them safe.”  
  
Of all the Beta Testers, Kirito had been the strongest, and had gotten the farthest. That had made him their unofficial leader, even if he was the only one who didn’t know that. And that was in spite of his self-proclaimed horrible social and communication skills.  
  
“I still can’t believe Coper tried that,” Argo hissed angrily.  
  
Kirito didn’t look up, “I know, it was a stupid thing to do and he would have been able to help them much better had he not gotten himself killed.” Coper hadn’t been a close friend true, but betrayal like that still stung.  
  
Wasn’t it obvious that as Beta Testers they were supposed to help and protect the Retail Players?  
  
Argo had an idea of why he might have, but to try and kill the one Beta Tester that would be essential to beating this stupid [Death Game]?  
  
Argo stood, “Oh, before I forget, that person is still trying to buy your sword.”  
  
“My mind will not change, you know that Argo.”  
  
[The Rat] nodded, “Still, he insisted, the price has gone up.”  
  
Kirito shook his head, leaning back against the cool stone, “My answer is still no. Diavel knows how to get the sword himself.”  
  
Argo shrugged, “I’ll leave the two of you to your naps then.”  
  
She turned and took a step, “I’d get some more grinding in before the boss fight if I were you.”  
  
When Kirito looked up, [The Rat] was gone.  


**< <>>  
**

  
Kirito pulled the covers over Asuna’s sleeping form and tucked the sheet under her chin. The girl had done better during their training/grinding session but she was still recovering from three, maybe four days with little to no sleep.  
  
He hoped it would be enough, “Well, tomorrow is the boss fight, finally.” He silently made his way to the window, his eyes on the bottom of the next floor.  
  
“It seems impossible right now,” he leaned on the sill, “There are ninety nine floors above us as we haven’t cleared even this one.”  
  
Asuna moaned from her place on the bed, her hand searching for something.  
  
At the sight, Kirito yawned, stretching before changing into his sleeping clothes and carefully joined her, his hand finding hers. “I promise you, Asuna,” he breathed as she cuddled closer, “I _will_ get you and everyone else home.”  
  
He set his alarm and for the first time in weeks, he didn’t have that nightmare about Coper’s death.  


**< <>>  
**

  
10:00 in the morning. It was the day of the raid; finally they were going to make some progress!  
  
Kirito shared a smirk with Asuna, “Do we need to go over what we’ll be doing again?”  
  
She shook her head, “We’re taking the boss‘s minions.”  
  
“What about group tactics?”  
  
“When you tell me to Switch, that means that you want me to take advantage of an opening you’ve made and if I say that then I…” she paused, “That’s your cue to take the heat off me, that also allows for the two of us to cover for each other while we wait out the reinforced lag that happens after Sword Skills, right?”  
  
He nodded, “You are a very quick study.”  
  
Asuna grinned, “I was top in my classes, what do you expect?” she teased playfully, poking his shoulder.  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, looking down at her when she patted his shoulder, “Yes?”  
  
“You’re It.” She dashed after the rest of the Boss Raid, giggling.  
  
He blinked for a few seconds, what she said finally making sense, “Get back here!” He dashed after his laughing partner.  


\----------------------------------------------------------------

  
Diavel stood before them, in front of the Boss Room. “Here we are.”  
  
Kirito and Asuna shared a solemn glance.  
  
_You ready?_ His eyes seemed to ask.  
  
_Yes, as ready as anyone can be._  
  
Diavel put his hand on the door, “I only have one thing to say: Let’s win this!”  
  
As the door opened, the Raid Team dashed into the huge room. At first nothing happened.  
  
Kirito was the first to notice the glowing eyes watching them all. “Here we go.”  
  
It jumped off the throne into the center of the room and roared, the boss’s name [Illfang the Kobold Lord] appearing above its head, three minions materializing at its feet.  
  
The idiot, Kibaou, led the charge, his sword meeting the mace of one of the minions.  
  
Kirito and Asuna tuned out most of what Diavel shouted to each of the parties as the fight dragged on. Already half an hour into the fight and everyone was getting tired.  
  
“Extras, keep those minions from flanking us!”  
  
“Right,” Kirito called, his mind working fast as he went after one of the Kobold Troopers, “We know what to do, keep up.”  
  
“Un,” she followed closely as he parried the mace and threw all his strength behind putting the mob off balance.  
  
“Switch!”  
  
Asuna blasted forward with all her speed, charging a [Linear] killing the Kobold Trooper. She was starting to breathe hard.  
  
“Onto the next one?” she turned.  
  
He had already run passed her, “We can’t let up!”  
  
A noise in the background caught his attention, and when he looked, he noticed that Illfang was in the red, on his last health bar. This was where they saw if the Devs truly had changed something big.  
  
Illfang threw the axe and shield away, reaching behind its back for what everyone expected to be a Talwar. Kirito’s eyes widened as Diavel dashed forward, breaking ranks.  
  
Kirito knew that sword, not just because he’d come across mobs using it. His grandfather had one hanging over the mantle at home…  
  
“No stop!”  
  
He shouted desperately, “Diavel, get back! That’s not a Talwar, that’s a Nodachi!”  
  
But it was too late, Diavel had already been hit.  
  
Kirito aborted his run on the minions and using his Dash Skill to make it to Diavel’s side, pulling a potion out of the pouch at his side as he came to a halt, “Here.”  
  
Diavel’s hand came up and stopped him, “You know what I was doing.”  
  
His eyes widened, “The Last Attack Bonus… You moron, you should have known that there might be something that changed!” Kirito raged with tears in his eyes.  
  
“You need to beat the Boss, Leader, for everyone.”  
  
Kirito’s eyes widened as Diavel’s form became staticky and then broke apart into those damned fractals of light, like everything else that died in the game.  
  
Kirito’s shoulders began to shake as he fought the tears in his eyes. Illfang’s berserk roar brought him out of it.  
  
“No. No more…”  
  
He was not about to let anyone else die, if they died here, then the game would never be beaten!  
  
Asuna slid to a halt next to him, “I’m with you.”  
  
He nodded, dark eyes hard with anger, speckles of gold dancing, “Like the minions.”  
  
As one, they started running forward, Kirito’s eyes narrowing as Illfang held the Nodachi to one side, in the opening motion of a Sword Skill. “I’ll get you first!” he muttered, bringing his own sword to ready a Sword Skill of his own.  
  
He caught the Nodachi on his Anneal Blade and pushed the Nodachi out of the way, “Switch!”  
  
Asuna, on his heels, flung herself forward, her Wind Fleuret glowing with a readied [Linear].  
  
Illfang brought the Nodachi down and trashed her cloak, not that it stopped her.  
  
Asuna hit Illfang as hard as she could, throwing it back with a lot of force.  
  
Had he not already known how pretty she was, Kirito would have been blindsided by her lovely features. Together they stood eyes hard between the panicking Raid Party and Illfang. Both of them panting slightly from the effort of keeping the Boss Monster from killing anyone else.  
  
“I sure hope that the rest of them aren’t expecting us to kill this thing on our own,” Asuna snarked as Illfang got ready to attack again.  
  
Kirito gave her a slightly dark laugh, “They just might be, ready to go again, Partner?”  
  
Asuna smirked, her eyes not leaving Illfang, “You know it.”  
  
That was when Illfang caught them by surprise, flinging Kirito into Asuna. It was on them before they could recover.  
  
They would have died, had Agil and his party not saved them. “Squishy DPS should stay _behind_ their Tanks,” the huge man scolded them; “We’ll hold him off while you recover.”  
  
Asuna nodded, pulling out a potion, “Are you ok?”  
  
Kirito pushed himself up, “Maybe?” he gratefully accepted the potion she held out for him and drank it. “That’s better,” he eyed his HP bar in the corner of his vision, only pushing himself back to his feet after he finished recovering HP.  
  
Asuna stood, “Will one last attack take it out?”  
  
“Looks like,” Kirito agreed, “Let’s go.”


	2. Beater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirito is outed as a Beta Tester, A Quest is completed, new friends are made, and a sword gets stolen.

Kirito leaned forward, beginning his sprint, “Come on, let’s finish this, Asuna.”  
  
Asuna blinked, but put it out of her mind to concentrate on their task at hand, “I’m right behind you.”  
  
Kirito glared at Illfang, readying another Sword Skill as its blade came down, “Switch!”  
  
Asuna darted under his sword and struck Illfang in the belly, leaping out of the way of another attack, “Switch!”  
  
He sliced through the wrist of the hand holding the Nodachi, “Switch!”  
  
His partner took out another chunk of HP. But she was obviously tiring now. “One more!” she panted, jumping back.  
  
“Together?” he asked, readying his blade.  
  
She gasped, bringing her rapier back up, “Un.”  
  
As one, they moved, and together, they made the last hit on Illfang.  
  
Kirito knelt where he landed, breathless. He blinked at the alert, how had he gotten the Last Attack Bonus? Hadn’t he and his partner struck at the same time?  
  
“We did it,” Asuna breathed, her eyes closed as she tried to regain her breath.  
  
“Yeah,” he agreed, “Did you also get an alert?” he looked at her over his shoulder. His eyes widening when he noticed she was swaying.  
  
“Asuna!” he was back on his feet, holding her shoulders a second later, steadying her.  
  
She blinked up at him blearily, “I’m alright now.” Her eyes left his, a slight blush on her cheeks, “You can let go of me.”  
  
He sighed in relief, his hands sliding down her arms as he stepped back.  
  
“Did you get an alert?” he asked again.  
  
She looked down at the loot she’d picked up, “‘Last Attack Bonus’? What’s that?”  
  
His eyes widened, “The [Last Attack Bonus] is the reward the last player to hit the boss gets.” He leaned in, “What did you get?”  
  
“‘Cloak of Moonlight’?” she asked, “I wonder what that is.”  
  
“Moonlight?” Kirito smirked, “Cloak of Moonlight and Midnight… huh, they match…”  
  
Asuna blinked up at him, “Did you get it too?”  
  
“Yes, but this only happens very rarely,” He nodded as Agil approached them.  
  
“Congratulations, it’s thanks to you that we won.”  
  
Kirito turned to look at the taller man, blinking in confusion, his attention turning to the rest of the Raid Party as they all began to clap. He looked away, a hand coming up to rub the back of his head in embarrassment.  
  
“You shouldn’t be cheering!”  
  
Kirito’s eyes snapped to Kibaou and he once again grit his teeth, waiting for Kibaou to force him to take the fall. His mind worked fast, but he couldn’t think of the words he’d need.  
  
He was not going to take the fall unless pushed. _Come on, make me. Make me take the fall, I dare you, Kibaou._  
  
“Why?” Kibaou demanded, “Why did you _let_ Diavel die?”  
  
Kirito looked to each face, still silent. He needed more than just that, but he could see understanding blooming in several of Kibaou’s companions. He closed his eyes lowered his head, waiting for someone to voice the fact that he could only be a [Beta Tester].  
  
Asuna reached for his shoulder but he shook his head. After a long look, she turned, opening her menu, waiting for him to make his move. She’d already decided that she’d follow him, no matter what happened.  
  
Kirito’s shoulders started shaking, his laugh started out quiet, almost broken, but as it grew in volume it became darker and darker. “Go on,” he taunted, “Say it. Say what everyone is thinking.”  
  
As he started navigating his menu, Asuna did the same.  
  
Finding what she wanted, she paused, waiting for Kirito’s next move.  
  
The man standing on Kibaou’s left finally found his voice, “You must be a [Beta Tester]!”  
  
Kirito’s smirk grew darker, “You think I’m like the rest of those n00bs?” his chuckle sounded quite evil now, “The truth is, they don’t compare to me. I made it higher than any other [Beta Tester], the reason I knew about the Nodachi is because I’ve faced monsters on higher floors that used it.”  
  
He turned, slowly walking back to where he’d left Asuna standing, listening to the mumbles and grumbles of the crowd, waiting for a word he could use to direct the hate away from the others who do their best to protect these… ingrates.  
  
“Cheater!” Kibaou shouted at his back, but Kirito paid him no mind as he came to a stop next to Asuna.  
  
“[Beta Tester]!”  
  
“Cheater!”  
  
“[BEATER]!”  
  
Kirito smirked, “[Beater]?” he tested the word, yes; that sounded perfect. “Fine then, I’m [The Beater]. Just don’t mistake me for the fools who didn’t even know how to level.”  
  
He turned to look at them all, “Everyone here is better than any of them could hope to be,” he equipped the [Cloak of Midnight] and a pure black long coat materialized on his person, outlined in silver thread, he now cut a very intimidating figure.  
  
He had just stepped towards the stairs when the collective gasp of the rest of the Raid Team stopped him. He turned, taking in the sight of Asuna in the glory of her [Cloak of Moonlight].  
  
It was the inverse of his own, with the majority a silvery cloth that seemed to shine in the dim light, lined in black thread. “I don’t know about the rest of you morons,” her voice rang out with a hard edge, “But I’m not going to alienate the person who saved my life.”  
  
Kirito smirked as he waited for her to catch up, “They will not be very welcoming if you do this.”  
  
“Why should that matter?” she asked as they began ascending the steps to the second floor.  
  
“You saved my life,” she reminded him, “I’m not the kind of person to forsake such a debt.”  
  
“I see.”  
  
“How did you know my name?” she asked, reaching forward to take his hand.  
  
Kirito turned, bringing a hand up, “Your HP Bar is right about here right?”  
  
She blinked, starting to turn her head.  
  
“Don’t turn your head silly, just use your eyes,” he caught her chin in a gentle grip, “You should see an HP Bar under yours. That’s my HP Bar, and my name should be next to it.”  
  
He let go, turning to continue their journey upward, leaving her in shock.  
  
“Ki-ri-to? Kirito?” she sped up so that he wouldn’t leave her behind, “Your name is Kirito?”  
  
He flashed her a grin, “Indeed, Asuna.”  
  
Asuna giggled, “I feel so dumb, Kirito-kun, it was there the whole time…”  
  
Her laughter was a balm to his ears like bells or chimes, especially after what he’d just done, “Asuna, remind me to apologize to Argo as soon as possible, I had to say horrible things about her and the others so that they could fly under the radar.”  


<<>>

  
“So this is the main town of the second floor?” Asuna looked around a bit, “It looks like a place right out of an American Western.”  
  
“Yes, Urbus, the whole floor follows this pattern,” Kirito hadn’t noticed that he still held her hand.  
  
Asuna just smiled. “We’re going to open the Teleport Gate right?”  
  
Kirito nodded, “It’s this way.” He finally looked down and noticed that he was still holding her hand.  
  
He stiffened, carefully extracting his hand from hers as he blushed. He cleared his throat and pulled ahead. What was it about this newbie that made him act so out of character?  
  
Asuna pouted holding her hand against her chest but then giggled. This [Beta Tester] was so cute. She hurried after him.  


<<>>  


After opening the Teleport Gate, Kirito led Asuna to a diner, “Are you hungry?”  
  
Asuna gave him an amused smile, “I think we skipped lunch the boss fight took so long.”  
  
Kirito nodded, handing her one of the food stuffs he’d bought, “Here’s to something other than Black Bread.”  
  
Asuna took a dainty bite, flavor exploding on her tongue.  
  
Kirito smirked, seeing her eyes widen in surprise, “Is it good?”  
  
“It’s quite sweet actually,” and hot. She thought, taking another tiny bite, “I think you bought us both desert instead of lunch.”  
  
“Maybe we should try one of everything in the market place then,” he teased, poking her cheek.  
  
Asuna giggled as Kirito led her to an Inn and rented a room with a bath, “Maybe we should, as long as you are buying.” She teased back, her grin growing even larger when she noticed the tips of his ears turning red.  
  
Kirito tried to busy himself with picking a room, “One bed or two, Asuna?”  
  
“One will work fine as long as it’s big enough, Kirito-kun,” Asuna replied, popping the last of the treat in her mouth.  
  
Kirito nodded, only listening with half an ear as he navigated the menu. He ended up choosing a room with a double bed and a bathroom, the only one in the Inn. As he was paying for the room, he was unaware of the small smile on his face.  


<<>>

 

The next day, Kirito was listening for hints of quests that would help Asuna when he found a group of players harassing Argo.  
  
He broke off from what he was doing to follow her as she dashed away from the group, trying to get away. He tapped off a quick message to Asuna and dashed after his friend.  
  
“But we need that Skill to finish our build!”  
  
Argo hissed, “No means no you morons!”  
  
Kirito stepped out of the shadows, “What is going on here?”  
  
The group harassing Argo froze and slowly turned around. At the sight of Kirito’s grim face they all flinched.  
  
“I thought people knew not to harass [Beta Testers]” Kirito turned, smiling slightly when Asuna came into view, her rapier out and ready to be used.  
  
“You know people can be quite stupid,” he reminded her.  
  
“Yes, I suppose,” Asuna looked thoughtful, “But I would’ve thought they’d think twice about harassing the person putting together the Guide Books for each floor.”  
  
Kirito turned back to Argo, the Retail Players having fled at the sight of [The Beater]. “You alright Argo?”  
  
Argo smiled, “I owe you one, Kii-bou. Name one favor and I shall do my best to fill it.”  
  
Kirito smiled slyly, “How did you get your whiskers?”  
  
Argo blinked then blushed deeply, “Well, I did say one favor…” she looked to be in deep thought for a few moments, “Alright! I’ll do one better, I’ll show you both, that is if you want, A-chan.”  
  
Asuna gave Kirito a questioning look only to get a shrug, “Alright, count me in then.”  
  
Argo grinned, “Thisa way please!” She giggled, grabbing Kirito’s arm and dragging him out of the Safe Zone.  
  
“Hey!”  
  
Kirito tugged at his arm, “Let go Argo!”  
  
“No way sa!”  
  
Asuna just rolled her eyes, shook her head and followed along behind them. “One thing is for sure, it’s never boring around Kirito-kun.”  


**< <>>**   


A day later found the three at the Extra Skill Quest. “It takes a long time to finish this quest, which is why I never finished it in the Beta, sa.”  
  
Kirito gave the NPC a long look before turning to Asuna, “Do you still want to do it?”  
  
Asuna smirked, “I would not be here if my mind had changed.”  
  
Kirito sighed, “Alright.” He stepped forward and triggered the quest.  
  
Argo had to hold in a giggle when she saw the two with the whiskers on their cheeks. It didn’t work on A-chan, but they made Kii-bou look adorable.  
  
Asuna found she couldn’t look away from her temporary partner’s face, her cheeks glowing. How could he be so cute?  
  
Kirito’s eyes were just as wide as he stared back at her. How could Asuna be this adorable?  
  
Argo coughed, getting their attention, “So, now that you know, I’ll be on my way, Kii-bou, A-chan~!”  
  
“See you later Argo,” Kirito replied, calling after her before she could get too far, “I’m sorry about what I said in the Boss Room.”  
  
Argo smiled softly, Kii-bou was one of the youngest [Beta Testers] even though he was [Leader]. “Think nothing of it, Kii-bou; you were just trying to protect us.”  
  
When Kirito turned to look at her, Argo had again disappeared.  
  
Asuna pulled on his sleeve, “Shall we get started?”  
  
Kirito smiled at her softly, turning to the boulders, “Let’s get to it.” He pulled one arm back and tried to hit the closest boulder as hard as he could.  


**< <>>**

 

Kirito was panting hard three days later as he finally shattered the boulder he’d chosen. He fell to the ground, “Finally,” he muttered, falling onto his back to look up at the underside of the third floor, where the [Elven War Campaign] Quest line waited. He closed his eyes.  
  
“Are you ok, Kirito-kun?”  
  
Kirito’s eyes opened to Asuna leaning over him, the whiskers on her cheeks making him blush, “Just really tired,” he muttered breathlessly.  
  
She smiled, holding out a bottle, “Here, you might want this then.”  
  
Kirito sat up, taking it gratefully. Popping the cork, he took a small mouthful then sighed. “Argo wasn’t kidding when she said this was hard and would take a while.”  
  
Asuna grinned then blinked, “Oh, right, I found this girl nearby,” She gestured to a slightly older teen, her dark purple-ish hair in a hime cut. “She was in trouble so I helped her and brought her back here.”  
  
The other girl was silently poking her fingers together and looking at the ground shakily. “Um, thank you for helping me!” she squeaked.  
  
Kirito smiled, “You are?”  
  
“P-Persephone,” she whispered, looking anywhere but at them.  
  
“Well, Persephone,” Kirito stood, “Would you like to try this quest too?”  
  
Persephone nodded, holding her Naginata in white knuckled hands. “I-I’m sorry for making you save me.”  
  
“Nah, don’t worry about it,” Kirito soothed as he walked her to the NPC and walked her through the right things to say. To activate the Quest herself.  
  
Persephone thanked him quietly, trying to choose a boulder for herself.  
  
Kirito made his way back to Asuna, “Should we invite her into our Party?” He took the glass bottle back from her to take another sip, “We could help her a lot.”  
  
Asuna looked unsure, “Are you certain about that? I mean, we don’t have enough Skill Slots to help do we?”  
  
“I have a third,” Kirito replied, “You’ll get one in the next level or so.”  
  
He put the cork back in the bottle, “I’ll put Spear into the slot for the moment and help her out after we all finish here.” He looked to his partner, “Was there anything to eat in the hut?”  
  
Asuna nodded, “Those sweets,” she handed him one, blushing. “I wish I could put Cooking in one of my slots, it’s my hobby IRL…”  
  
“You’re certainly picking up Gamer vocab fast,” he chuckled, “You’ll be one of us in no time.” He tapped her nose teasingly, before taking a bite out of the treat.  
  
Asuna’s blush darkened, “I see,” she looked away, a tiny, pleased smile playing across her full lips.  


**< <>>**

 

Kayaba Akihiko rubbed his hands down his face as he stared at Cardinal’s Avatar, “Are you sure that that’s the only way to log them all out?”  
  
“Yes Master,” Cardinal replied, tonelessly, “Your counter measures will be effective, but I don’t think restricting the MHCP AIs will do any good. Especially if you truly wish for the Players to be the Army at the Senshi’s backs.”  
  
The man huffed, “I wish to awaken as many with the ancient magics as possible, if it had been possible to leave the respawn mechanic alone I would have. And I managed to save several hundred people with that speech, but I couldn’t save enough of them!” He was tempted to slam his head against the GM console  
  
Cardinal, who looked like the splitting image of Serenity (the queen) in his once tattered memories, her floor length silvery white hair, and bright sky blue eyes were solemn and she wore a sleeveless blue dress that hugged her frame, flaring out to pool around her feet with a huge butterfly bow at the small of her back, chuckled, “Yes, but I can detect the dormant magic of the Senshi of Saturn, would you like me to find her?”  
  
The only remaining GM shook his head, trying to shake the feeling that he hadn’t gotten Cardinal’s avatar quite right, “Don’t bother,” he sighed heavily, “Bring up the map showing all the remaining [Beta Testers] and a stream of what each are doing.”  
  
He turned to the walls in the dungeon under the Black Iron Palace on the first floor, wincing when he saw that there were only 249 left of the 800 that had been convinced to play the retail version of the game. “So few; and they were supposed to be leading small teams once the game ended.”  
  
“Bring up Kirito’s Stream.”  
  
“Of course Master,” Cardinal played with the console, bringing a screen showing Kirito, Asuna and Persephone working on a quest to the forefront of them and enlarged it. “Magnifying by ten.” She looked up.  
  
Akihiko watched passively for a minute, “He seems to go out of his way to help Players, even after that speech on the first floor.”  
  
“YUI’s analysis shows that that’s just how he is,” Cardinal reported, “Her program is starting to show errors, but her report states that he was taking the fall so that the rest could do what they could without harassment.”  
  
“I told Rinko-chan that the MHCP were a bad idea.” He sighed. “Show me everything that the other devs changed so that I can get that information to our Spy Master somehow.”  
  
“Compiling list.”  


**< <>>**

  
“Yeah!” Asuna fell forward as her boulder unexpectedly fell to pieces. She would have hit the ground, had now familiar arms not wrapped themselves around her middle. She sighed in relief as she was pulled back onto her feet.  
  
“Was I putting a little too much weight behind that one?” she asked, panting almost as much as he had been the day before, leaning back into the solid chest behind her.  
  
“I’d say so,” Kirito agreed, watching the pebbles break into fractals of light. “I think you need a snack,” He pulled a meat bun from his pocket and dropped it into her hand, stepping away as soon as he was sure she wouldn’t fall down.  
  
“I’m going to check on Persephone.”  
  
Asuna sighed, sliding to her knees as she took a big bite of the meat bun, “Ok,” she called after him as she savored the flavor. She looked up, watching as the slight breeze picked up. Her cheeks colored as she watched his hair shift and the bottom of the [Coat of Midnight] swirl around his ankles.  
  
By now, a fourth person had joined them, an older woman who went by the username Beryl, who had golden-red hair and gentle, rich blue-green eyes and used a bo staff.  
  
Asuna had hit it off with her quickly, and Persephone too. Kirito was nervous around them, but that was alright, because she was willing to be his buffer.  
  
Kirito had warmed up to Persephone well, but he watched Beryl like a hawk.  
  
“Kirito-kun, why are you watching her so closely?” Asuna asked the fifth day they’d been there.  
  
Kirito shrugged, “Something about her just sets off some alarm in my head that I don’t understand,” he looked into her eyes, “I think we need to be careful.”  
  
She nodded, “Ok, I see, I think.” It was always better to be overly cautious in this game after all. She may not understand, but her partner’s instincts hadn’t led them wrong once. “I may not understand, but I trust you.”  
  
He looked away, holding out a bottle for her to take, “You really should join a guild if someone you trust asks you to,” he muttered, his cheeks red.  
  
“We’ve been over this before, Kirito-kun,” she knocked his head gently with a fist, “It’s kind of hard when there are no guilds yet.”  
  
She opened one eye and gazed at him as if judging his actions, “Besides, I don’t trust anyone else.”  
  
“That’s very high praise my lady,” he teased weakly, his cheeks going bright red.  
  
Twin shouts of victory made them turn, “Looks like we can finally move on-” his eyes widened as one of the boulders revealed a hidden cave.  
  
“Where does that lead?” she stared.  
  
He shrugged, taking her hand and slowly entered the cave, “Let’s find out.”  
  
Kirito sucked in a stunned breath when they came to a dead end, “Three Bosses?” he almost couldn’t say aloud. This wasn’t good.  
  
He turned, “Asuna, has anyone told you if the Boss Room was found yet?”  
  
The chestnut haired teen shook her head, “No, no one’s contacted me at all.”  
  
“PM Argo, make sure she puts this in her Guide Books.” He turned, pulling her back out of the cave, running as hard as he could.  
  
Asuna had already opened her menu and was typing on the holographic keyboard as fast as she could. Her head shot up, “Kirito-kun, what about that thing you got as a drop not long ago?”  
  
“The Chakram?” he asked, materializing it, “What about it?”  
  
“What does it need to be used?”  
  
He blinked, checking the ring-like weapon, “[Throwing Knives] and [Martial Arts].”  
  
“You have both, right?” Asuna asked hurriedly.  
  
“Yes, but my [Throwing Skill] isn’t high enough to use it.”  
  
His partner cursed louder than she really should have, catching Beryl’s attention.  
  
“What’s up?” she asked curiously, coming to stand next to Asuna.  
  
Asuna hummed, “I think this Chakram will be important somehow, but I don’t have the [Throwing Knives] Skill and Kirito-kun here doesn’t have his skill high enough to use it.” She finished the message and sent it off to Argo.  
  
Kirito was looking at her over the ring-like weapon as if judging her. “Do you have the [Throwing Knives] Skill?”  
  
Beryl blinked, “I do, it’s something I kind of picked up as a hobby IRL, and I wanted to see how well it would do me here, the bo is for when I have to fight up close.”  
  
“So, it’s pretty high then?”  
  
The redhead nodded.  
  
“Let’s see if you can use this then,” the dark haired teen tossed her the chakram.  
  
Beryl caught it expertly, as a party invite opened in front of her and Persephone. “Thank you,” she tapped the accept button.  
  
Persephone’s finger trembled as she also accepted, “T-thank you very much.”  
  
Kirito smiled, “Asuna, are you done with the IM to Argo?”  
  
Asuna dismissed her menu, “Yes, just finished; now I’m waiting for a reply.”  
  
The NPC smiled, “You have completed the task.”  
  
Kirito sighed as the painted whiskers disappeared from their cheeks, “Thank you.”  
  
He led the three away from the quest, and the first mob they came to, Kirito turned, “Alright Beryl, show us how well you can use that thing.”  
  
Beryl smirked, brushing her dark red hair behind her shoulder and let the chakram fly with a flick of her wrist. Two, three hits and the bull died.  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed as he nodded, “This we can work with.”  
  
It was time to make their way to the labyrinth.  


**< <>>**   


They made it to the town just in time for the strategy meeting. In the shadows, Argo was wringing her hands together, looking panicked. “Kii-bou!”  
  
She threw herself into Kirito’s chest and he had little choice but to catch her, “What’s wrong Argo?”  
  
“They found the Boss Room yesterday,” her eyes were wide and scared when he looked down at her, “And they refuse to wait for me to update the Guide Book with the information you and A-chan found!”  
  
His expression turned rather grim, “And they are planning the Raid thinking there are only two bosses?”  
  
Argo nodded.  
  
Asuna hissed, “They are morons, are they planning to die?”  
  
Beryl grimaced, hiding her eyes with a plan, “Kirito-san, the Raid Group dying will completely arrest the momentum that beating the first floor boss created, won’t it?”  
  
The only young man of their group nodded, offering Argo a slot in their Party. “If they do this, then we all will die, especially if they fail.”  
  
Argo gave him a dubious look before accepting it.  
  
Kirito turned to look at the three girls that had followed him, “Let’s bust this meeting, shall we?” he smirked.  
  
Asuna took a step forward, “I’m with you, Kirito-kun.”  
  
“M-me too,” Persephone trembled, but also took a determined step.  
  
Beryl gave him a smirk of her own, “We’re behind you all the way, Commander.”  
  
Argo sighed, “How are we going to do this?”  
  
“How else,” Kirito’s smirk widened into a daring grin, “We’re going to break down the door.”  


**< <>>**   


Bang!  
  
The door opened with such force that it bounced off the wall of the meeting room. Kibaou and Lind looked up from their argument, their eyes narrowing when they saw [The Beater].  
  
“What do you want?” Kibaou sneered angrily.  
  
[The Beater] gave [The Rat] a nod, “Go ahead and distribute the newest addition of the Guide Book.”  
  
[The Rat] gave him a grin as she opened her Menu. “Those of you who don’t agree with these two Bozos gather ‘round for the thing that will keep you alive in the Boss fight, sa!” In her hands, Guide Books appeared.  
  
“Asuna,” [The Beater] called.  
  
“Yes?”  
  
“Can you handle the explanation?” he sat down on a large chair that no one else had noticed.  
  
Asuna gave him a nod, her [Cloak of Moonlight] shimmering with every move she made. “As you were finding the Boss Room yesterday, my group and I were lucky enough to find some brand new information on the boss.”  
  
She smirked, “It was just our luck that we had a [Beta Tester] with us,” she nodded her head to Kirito’s form in his chair, watching them all with dark eyes.  
  
“He was kind enough to tell us that while there were only two bosses in the Beta, THERE ARE NOW THREE.”  
  
The girl in the silvery white cloak was terrifying. She turned away, “While you are all bickering about what to do, I’m going to replace my gear. Let us know when you are ready to fight the bosses.”  
  
[The Beater] stood from his seat as Asuna made her way to his side, “Shall we go, Kirito-kun?”  
  
“Un,” he agreed, allowing her to lay her hand on his elbow as they walked out, [The Rat] and two unknown girls following behind them.  


**< <>>**

Kirito sighed in relief, almost slumping and staggering as the doors closed behind them. “I am so glad that that is over.”  
  
“That really makes you that nervous?” Asuna let the boy lean against her as they made their way towards the market, where they would all be able to find a blacksmith that could upgrade and fix their equipment.  
  
“I’ve never been very good at reading people,” Kirito admitted, “Never liked large crowds either.”  
  
Argo gave his shoulder a squeeze, “You underestimate yourself Kii-bou.”  
  
Kirito gave her a pointed look and then shook his head, “You’re wrong Argo.” He carefully pulled away from her and Asuna, “Let’s go take care of our gear.”  
  
He turned to his partner, “You don’t need to buy something to replace your rapier, it’s the best Rapier on the floor, what you should do instead is upgrade it.”  
  
“Upgrade it?”  
  
He nodded, “All swords are upgradable remember, yours goes up to +6 while mine goes up to +8.”  
  
She blinked, finally understanding, “…Oh, I’d forgotten you’d said that…”  
  
A few minutes later, they found themselves in front of one of the first Player Blacksmiths.  
  
“Hello, I’m Netzou, do you need any repairs?” the boy asked, “Or maybe a new weapon?”  
  
Asuna looked to Kirito, “Do you mind if I go first?”  
  
Kirito shook his head, “Go ahead.”  
  
“I’d like to upgrade my Rapier please.” Asuna held out [Wind Fleuret].  
  
Netsou nodded sourly, taking her sword. He held it in his left hand as he tossed all the materials needed into the forge.  
  
“Give me your luck,” Asuna breathed.  
  
Kirito smiled, letting her grip two of his fingers tightly, “I don’t have luck,” he teased.  
  
“You’re my luck,” she corrected, watching the forge happily.  
  
He smiled, turning his eyes onto Netzou as there was a bright flash of light. His eyes narrowing as he watched the man instead of the forge.  
  
Asuna gasped as her [Wind Fleuret] broke.  
  
“Oh no, I’m sorry!” Netzou apologized, “I don’t have another one but I’ll pay…”  
  
“Don’t bother, i-it’s ok,” she turned away, pulling her partner with her as she left.  
  
Kirito sent the boy a glare as he brought his arm up and let her lean into his side. He paid the wetness no mind as she sobbed almost silently into his shirt. He led her to a bench and sat her down, “Shall we go back to the Inn?”  
  
Asuna nodded, holding in a whimper. She hadn’t realized how much she’d treasured the sword he’d given her until it had been broken.  
  
He sighed, leading his partner back to their room, his mind working as fast as it ever had. Someone had upset his Partner. He was going to get to the bottom of this.  


**< <>>**   


Asuna watched Kirito as he paced from their bed, “What’s wrong?”  
  
“Something doesn’t seem right,” Kirito replied, opening his Menu and looking through his [Friend’s List]. Under Asuna’s name was Argo’s and the rest of the surviving [Beta Testers]. He scrolled through it, looking for a particular name: Heathcliff.  
  
Asuna had taken her shoes off and was hugging her legs as she watched him, “What are you doing?”  
  
“If I’m right, then there’s no way that your sword should have broken, it was +4, not +6,” he muttered almost to himself, biting down on one fingernail. “The only way that a Weapon can be broken by a Blacksmith like Netzou is if your blade had already gone through the process six times already, regardless of if the upgrade attempt was successful or not.”  
  
“So then why did it break?” her eyes had dried, but she was still depressed.  
  
“That’s what I’m going to find out,” He replied, having found the right name. He pulled up the message screen and composed his inquiry:  
  
_Heathcliff (cc: Argo)_  
  
_The only way for a weapon to break at a Blacksmith’s shop is for it to have been upgraded the maximum number of times already, right?_  
  
_Kirito_  
  
He sent the message and closed his Menu, plopping down on the bed next to Asuna, still in deep thought. He blinked when he felt weight against his side and shoulder. He looked down into her chestnut eyes.  
  
“Why me?”  
  
He sighed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, “I’m going to find out,” he promised, “I’m not sure if you were targeted specifically or if it was just a crime of opportunity.”  
  
His hand began petting her hair, “But I do know this: If we don’t stop it, this could lead to the first case of Player Killing, and that is something that I cannot allow as a [Beta Tester].”  
  
Asuna closed her eyes, letting his ministrations calm her nerves. “We can’t let that happen in this Death Game, can we?”  
  
“Mm,” He agreed as an alert appeared in front of him. He let her doze on his shoulder as he opened the message and nodded. “I was right, it’s a scam.”  
  
“What does that mean?”  
  
He was silent for a moment, “You handed it over, right?”  
  
“Yes,” she sat up, turning to look in his eyes, “What about it?”  
  
“Open your menu.”  
  
She gave him a look.  
  
“Open your menu,” he repeated, his dark eyes glimmering in the faint room light, “Open your menu, and materialize every single item in your inventory.”  
  
“Are you sure?”  
  
“Yes, you’ll have to dig into the menu a little, but it’s easy enough to find.” He looked over her shoulder.  
  
Asuna navigated her menu quickly, having heard a urgency in his voice. “Here?” her finger hovered over the button.  
  
“We don’t have much time. Do it.”  
  
She pressed it and there was a flash of light.


	3. Blacksmith Troubles, Strange Background Fluff, and the First Part of a Boss Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> PoH is a Bastard, history is learned, and Boss Fights are... not fun.

Asuna’s eyes widened as all her inventory fell to the floor in the middle of the room, “I didn’t know I was carrying that much stuff,” she muttered numbly, not even noticing when Kirito got up from the bedside next to her.  
  
“Let’s see,” he murmured, carefully sweeping the clothes on top to the side; making sure not to touch them with his hands. The speed at which he sorted through her equipment sped up each time he checked his H.U.D.  
  
Her expression twisted as she watched, “Kirito-kun, what are you doing?”  
  
“Give me just one more minute,” he paled when he looked at her over his shoulder, she looked ready to kill him.  
  
“Come on,” his eyes lit up as he pulled it out, “Here it is!” [Wind Fleuret] had been near the bottom of the pile, but he’d found it. He lifted the sword in its sheath, almost reverently.  
  
Her eyes were wide with surprise as her partner held her rapier out for her to take, “How did you know?”  
  
He sighed, “In the last few days of the [Beta Test] we decided that we were going to see how many exploits we could find that would allow a Player to steal the gear and equipment of another.” He carefully sat down next to her, patiently waiting for her to take her rapier back.  
  
“And that back there with the blacksmith was something you figured out?” her hands came up, trembling as he placed the familiar, comforting weight into her hands.  
  
He nodded, “We all got together on the top most Floor we’d made it to and set it up, they never asked me to be a supposed victim, I just watched.” He shrugged, “we weren’t going to keep the equipment, it was all returned, but we decided that we needed to know what it looked like, in case it happened in the actual game. What he’s doing would, in a normal game, be considered Troll behavior, considering how hard we work for the gear we have.”  
  
“But since this is a Death Game,” her eyes widening in realization.  
  
“This kind of behavior can kill people.”  
  
“We have to stop him before someone dies!” she breathed urgently.  
  
He placed a calming hand on her shoulder, “Asuna, calm down.”  
  
“But!”  
  
“Sh,” he sighed, “Asuna, listen to me.”  
  
Her teeth clicked sharply as she closed her mouth, glaring up at him without any heat.  
  
“We have to stop this without it getting to the rest of the Players,” he explained patiently, “Letting the other Regular, Retail Players know could lead to the first ever case of Player Killing.”  
  
“P-player Killing?”  
  
“P. K. is what we call it, it’s usually Troll behavior.”  
  
She bit her lip, “I don’t want anyone to die, I just want him to stop.” She pulled [Wind Fleuret] to her chest, she wasn’t sure why she was so afraid of losing the gift this boy had given her.  
  
“I know; which is why I’m going to take care of it myself.”  
  
“Kirito-kun, that’s too dangerous!” she nearly shouted, “What if you die?”  
  
“Asuna, I’m a [Beta Tester], [The Beater]. I’ll be fine. It’s not like I was planning to dissolve our Party or anything.” He reassured her, “I’ll be back before you wake up in the morning.”  
  
“You had better be next to me when I wake tomorrow,” she grumbled, “What about my stuff?”  
  
He smiled, picking up all of her things but for her extra clothes, “Are you trying [Tailoring]?”  
  
“Y-yeah, what of it?”  
  
“Usually I just sell the skins that I pick up, but if you want to have some domestic skills as a hobby that’s your choice.” he sent a trade window her way, with all of her things in it. “I’ll leave you to pick the clothes up, since I doubt you want me to touch your undergarments.”  
  
He swiftly made his way to the door, “I’ll see you in the morning, Asuna.” And he was gone.  


<<>>

  
Kirito hit the ground in a roll as he once again dodged the [Mad Cow], taking a huge chunk of HP out of it as he slashed at its legs. He panted, his arms trembling just slightly as he returned to his feet. He swallowed shallowly, brought his [Anneal Blade] over his shoulder, and spread his feet slightly wider apart than shoulder width.  
  
He hunched slightly, leaning forward as his blade began to glow. He let out a loud battle cry, bringing his sword down and lunged, letting the [Horizontal] Sword Skill move his body, faster than he could move on his own.  
  
Behind him, much like that [Dire Wolf] on that first evening, the [Mad Cow] burst out of existence. Sweat dripped from his chin as he sheathed his sword over his shoulder and looked back to where the [Mad Cow] had once been.  
  
He brought his fingers down, ignoring the screen telling him what his drops were and how much EXP and Col he’d received from his latest Kill. He checked his skill 150, “Good, I can equip [Quick-Draw].”  
  
“There are so few of us left, how are 250 [Beta Testers] supposed to protect 8,000 ungrateful morons?” he chose the skill [Quick-Draw], stretched, and headed back to where he, Asuna, Beryl, Argo, and Persephone were staying.  
  
Something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye and he stopped turning to look. No Player, (who wasn’t a [Beta Tester]), in their right mind would be out this late. He checked his H.U.D, nearly half passed midnight, very few NPCs would be out either if any, so, what was going on?  


<<>>  


He followed the blinking star and found himself in a small sandy Oasis, “Was this here in the Beta?” Kirito asked himself as he slowly made his way down to the water. It was such a peaceful place, “I almost wish Asuna were here to see this too, maybe once we’re done with the Floor Boss.”  
  
He caught sight of the flickering light again, in the mouth of what looked like a limestone cave. He took off after it again, stopping briefly at the cave mouth to pick up a convenient torch, which lit up the moment he had it in his hands. “Well, that’s not at all suspicious,” he muttered sarcastically as he entered the cave.  
  
It was very dark, and not knowing what to expect, he reached for his sword, wanting to be ready in case a Mob appeared. He needn’t have bothered. The only things in the empty cave were the pictures on the walls.  
  
No, not pictures; “Are these Hieroglyphs?” he wondered, taking a moment to gaze at the walls in wonder at the colors. Not far from where he’s stopped briefly in surprise the cave opened up into a huge chamber, with an altar at the other end, where the flickering star, was it even a star, had come to rest.  
  
He swallowed again, “Well, I’ve come this far, might as well go all the way.” Carefully approaching the altar, it was dark in the chamber and he could only see what his torch lit, other than the spark of light.  
  
Seeing a torch holder somehow set in the wall, he took a deep breath and set his torch down. His eyes widened and there was a slight hiss, (his own surprised intake of a breath he realized) as his torch caused a chain reaction: once the torch was placed, one by one, torches he hadn’t noticed began lighting themselves, within the next minute, he could see everything.  
  
Kirito’s grip on his [Anneal Blade] tightened, his breathing picking up, he’d never come across this before!  
  
“Welcome, Commander.”   
  
Kirito jerked, turning to the altar, where there had once been a spark; there was now a young woman. “Who are you?” he asked, taking a step back.  
  
The young woman had pale skin and dark, nearly black hair, “Me? I am merely a Historian, but I am afraid that much of human history has been lost, what was once fact is now simply myth and legend.” She held out her hand to him, “Come now, this is a sacred place, the monsters meant to train your army cannot step foot here. Come, join me.”  
  
He blinked, Commander? What was that supposed to mean? His Army? What army? He took the stairs slowly, not sure if he could trust this, mysterious NPC.  
  
“What is your name?”  
  
He could now see what looked like dark green highlighting her hair and soft red eyes.  
  
Her red lips parted in a gentle smile, “You may call me Setsuna.”  
  
“Kirito.”  
  
She blinked, “Kirito?” she repeated slowly, and the question mark over her head that he hadn’t even noticed turned into an exclamation point, then she nodded, “Well, Commander Kirito, in this floating castle you will find pieces of old stories and legends, you and your small unit will have to collect them all, from all one hundred floors. These stories are the history of a lost kingdom, and I fear that the Senshi will have to fight on their own.”  
  
“You don’t mean the old stories from Jyuban from seven years ago?” He looked up at her sharply  
  
“I’m sorry; I do not know what you mean.” Setsuna cocked her head to one side, “Our young Heiress has gone missing, and I was told to give the mission of finding her to the new Commander of her army.”  
  
She paused, “You are Commander Kirito, aren’t you?”  
  
He looked passed her, to the hieroglyphs on the walls. There was only one way to go forward, and since he’d already accidentally triggered this huge quest line he might as well. “Yes, I am Commander Kirito,” he looked up at her, “Although, I was not aware that I’d signed up for an army.”  
  
She simply smiled secretively, “Shall I start with your first lesson?”  
  
He checked the time, he could spend another half hour here, but then he had to go back to Asuna. “I’m ready.”  
  
Setsuna clapped her hands once, sharply and the cave chamber fell away into a pitch blackness. “Long ago, at the very beginning of our ancient kingdom’s history the first king, Thoth, gave our people writing.”  
  
From the darkness rose a model of the Solar System, the sun in the middle, and the planets orbiting it, the inner planets barely visible. A moment later the Earth and Moon became magnified as he watched in awe.  
  
The Earth and Moon soon took up the whole space, but something was off, Kirito just couldn’t figure out what it was. It felt like they were floating on nothing but he knew that the cave floor was under his feet.  
  
The moon was lit, looking like there were cities everywhere. The scene zoomed in again, this time showing clashing armies before a light appeared, a palace and a man with an Ibis perched on one shoulder and a woman by his side.  
  
“He and his wife, Sseshat, appeared, almost as if out of thin air and brought our many peoples out of what seemed to be a never ending war.”  
  
He blinked as he watched the armies slowly disintegrate, showing instead the man with the Ibis, Thoth, obviously teaching the people to read and write.  
  
“And through teaching us writing we gained wisdom. He and his wife ruled peacefully for many years. Eventually his wife gave birth to a daughter.” Setsuna finished, the last of the images showing Queen Sseshat, a young woman with long blond hair and bright blue eyes, holding a baby who looked almost identical.  
  
“Your first quest is to find the missing piece, with his daughter’s name, it should be somewhere on this floor.” Setsuna turned back to him, she seemed almost sad that she could not continue her tale.  
  
He barely held in a groan, “Understood, I have to get back now.”  
  
“Good luck Commander.”  
  
Kirito didn’t bother looking back as he sprinted from the cave.  


<<>>  


“Master!”  
  
Kayaba looked up from his work, “Yes, Cardinal?” he looked very tired; he’d been working almost nonstop for the last month to undo the damage the curse of a spell had done to his game/training simulator.  
  
“The [Leader] of the [Beta Testers] has triggered the [History of the Kingdom] quest!”  
  
He groaned, “Bring up the stream Cardi-chan,” turning to the wall, he sagged into his chair. “Kirito-kun wasn’t supposed to trigger that Quest Line until at least the Tenth Floor had been unlocked…”  
  
He watched, eyes widening and then narrowing as Kirito spoke with [The Historian] NPC. “I think we can use this. Have you checked on the stupid Blacksmith?”  
  
“The [Leader] has taken it on himself to handle it.” The AI reported stoically, “I doubt he will allow Player Killing to happen, especially this soon.”  
  
Kayaba sighed, “At least that’s something, even if it would likely save his life.”  
  
“He is indeed one of the many Players that truly believe what you said at the beginning of the game,” the blonde replied, she turned to the wall, watching passively as their best hope for the army began learning the history of his new liege. “How can we use this, Master?”  
  
“Bring up where the information of Queen Isis is.”  
  
“Compiling.” Cardinal’s fingers flew across the holographic keyboard.  


<<>>  


Kirito yawned widely as he finally arrived in town. “Maa, it’s much too late to be out. I really meant to be back by now.” He muttered tiredly as he entered the seemingly abandoned first floor of the Inn, “That story took much longer than I thought it would.”  
  
It was almost two in the morning. He was going to be tired for a while. Silently, he climbed the stairs and slowly opened the door to the room he shared with Asuna.  
  
Closing the door, he opened his menu and put his gear away, changing his under shirt to the one he’d chosen as his night shirt and switched his pants to a pair of shorts, taking off his shoes and socks before carefully getting into bed and watching Asuna’s face go from scrunched up with worry to relaxed. “I promised, Asuna, I’m not one to break those,” he whispered reassuringly into her ear, gently brushing some hair out of her sleeping face.  
  
He smiled, set his alarm, and fell asleep as soon as his head hit their shared pillow.  


<<>>  


“Well Argo, what do you have for me?” Kirito asked [The Rat] around a yawn the next morning as they walked to the place the [Raid Meeting] would take place.  
  
“I never found anything like that in the [Beta],” Argo replied, looking through her notes, “It might be something new the devs put in after the test was over sa.”  
  
“That’s what I was afraid of,” he muttered, tearing into a meat pie as they walked.  
  
Asuna looked up from her own breakfast, “What is this about?”  
  
“I found what might just be brand new content,” Kirito replied, his eyes narrow, “I’ll take you there later, I need to find a piece of a story and I want to see if the NPC might have some hints.”  
  
The chestnut haired girl nodded, “Alright.”  
  
Beryl looked intrigued, “Can we help?”  
  
He gave the redhead a wry smile, “I think I’m going to need it.” He took another bite of breakfast. “I was told that ‘My Unit’ would come in handy.”  
  
He sighed, “I’m afraid we are going to have to explore every nook and cranny of each floor to find all the information.”  
  
“But we don’t have time for that,” Persephone burst out, blushing badly when the rest of her party turned to look at her, “I-I mean…”  
  
The young man of the group sighed, “Go on Persephone, we’re not going to bite you.”  
  
The girl named for the Greek Spring Goddess nodded, “We don’t have time to look for that kind of information right now, with the Boss Fight looming,” she bit her lip thoughtfully, “What if we were to use Argo-san’s [Information Network]? Since we aren’t going to have time?”  
  
“That’s a really good idea ‘Sephone-chan~” Argo smiled, like a cat who had gotten into the cream, “I’ll send out word of what we’re looking for.”  
  
“While your informants are doing that,” Asuna leaned against Kirito’s shoulder, “What are we going to do about the fraud?”  
  
Argo’s head whipped around, “What was that?”  
  
Kirito grimaced, “Some idiot tried to steal Asuna’s [Wind Fleuret].” The door opened, and, as they were the first party to arrive, they commandeered a table in the back.  
  
“Wait,” Beryl stared, “Some moron decided that he was going to steal the rapier of the Player that is very likely the second most powerful in the game?”  
  
Asuna nodded, her hand tightening around the sword at her side. “[Wind Fleuret] is important to me,” she blushed, looking away, “Because Kirito-kun gave it to me.”  
  
Kirito put a hand on her shoulder, “I will be taking care of it personally, Argo; can you make sure this does not get out?”  
  
“Even if every Player emptied their purses it wouldn’t be enough Col to buy this info.”  
  
He nodded, with a small smile on his face.  
  
Persephone leaned her Naginata against a chair and sat down, “I’m not sure I’m strong enough to be here…”  
  
“I’m sure we’ll be fine,” Beryl leaned her bo staff next to the younger girl’s Naginata and sat in the chair next to hers, laying a hand on her shoulder. “I wasn’t at the first boss fight either.”  
  
Argo stood in front of the table, closing her menu, “Do you want me in the Boss Fight, Kii-bou?”  
  
“Only if you think you can help Argo,” the boy stared into her eyes, “I wouldn’t want you, or anyone else to die because we got careless.”  
  
The Information Broker nodded, finally taking a seat herself as the doors opened wide, admitting Lind and Kibaou.  


<<>>  


“Well, that could have gone better,” Asuna mumbled into the treat her partner had gotten for her.  
  
He snorted, “What, you mean something could have actually gotten done?” he asked sarcastically as he tore into his own dinner savagely. “You know how Lind and Kibaou are.”  
  
The two’s argument had lasted passed noon and had eaten up much of the afternoon as well.  
  
They were sitting outside in the cool evening air outside the Inn where the strategy meeting for taking on the second floor boss had taken place earlier that afternoon. Not far away, Netzou had set up again and they watched; eyes narrow as another Player with an [Anneal Blade] asked for his sword to be upgraded.  
  
“How often does an upgrade failure usually happen, Kirito-kun?” she turned chestnut eyes to the boy next to her.  
  
“Numerically it doesn’t and won’t happen often,” he replied, not taking his eyes from the Blacksmith, watching with dispassionate eyes as the upgrade failed, “But sometimes…”  
  
She turned her eyes back to the scene, catching the Player’s outrage and the apologies, the demand to try again.  
  
“The chances are very small,” he lay a hand on her knee, “But sometimes, the Blacksmith will fail several times in a row.”  
  
“How many times was that [Anneal Blade]?” she wondered.  
  
“From his reaction, it was a +4.” He smirked, “And it went back to 0.”  
  
“Are you going to do something about that idiot now?”  
  
He shook his head, “He tried to take your rapier just yesterday, so we need to wait.”  
  
“I really don’t like waiting,” she sighed, standing.  
  
“Let’s get back, I can’t stand watching this anymore,” standing, Kirito took her hand and led her back to their Inn.  


<<>>  


Cardinal watched Kayaba leave the Control Room, “Master, why did you create a second G.M. Account when you are the only G.M?”  
  
Kayaba Akihiko yawned, “It was for my younger brother to use, had I found him before the game began. Now it just won’t be used.”  
  
“Good night Master, you should get some sleep,” the A.I. called after him.  
  
“Good night Cardi-chan.”  
  
She turned back to the console once he was gone. He might be done for the night, but she still had work to do, “There is still much to do.” Now that she knew who the second Account was for, she could begin looking for him.  


<<>>  


Three days later, Kirito approached Netzou, wearing a helmet to disguise his face. While Netzou was working, Kirito opened his Menu and waited, his finger hovering over a specific button.  
  
When the sword broke, he tapped the short cut and closed his hand around the sword handle. “Nice try Netzou,” he whispered, “Now, come with me so you can explain yourself, we wouldn’t want anyone to die over something this stupid.”  
  
The other boy flinched, but rolled up his rug and got up to follow silently.  


<<>>  


Netzou fidgeted in his chair, under the combined stares of [The Beater] and [The Rat].  
  
“Why?” [The Rat] asked, “Why did you start this scam?”  
  
The regular player couldn’t look at them; it looked like he didn’t even know what to say or where to begin.  
  
“You know,” [The Beater] began conversationally, “For all the talks of guilds we don’t get access to that function until the next floor.”  
  
“Currently, you’re the only blacksmith, Netzou, or should I call you Nezha?” he sat down, “And yet, though you seemingly gain nothing from scamming other Players, you are taking their weapons.”  
  
“Weapons that they depend on to keep them safe sa,” [The Rat] continued, still standing at [The Beater’s] side, “In a normal game this would simply be Troll behavior and you’d get P.K.ed a few times, until you learned your lesson and stopped.”  
  
“But, you see Nezha,” [The Beater] leaned forward, “We cannot allow that to happen here. SAO may be a game, but it’s not a game you play.”  
  
Nezha slouched down, trying to hide. He had an inkling of what was coming.  
  
“You do realize, Nezha, that in taking their swords and other weapons you are potentially killing the Players you steal from?” [The Beater] leaned back in his chair, “That Rapier you tried to take, my partner’s life depends on it.”  
  
[The Rat] shook her head, “[Leader] we’re getting off topic.”  
  
“Simply trying to drill into his head how bad of an idea this whole thing was Argo,” he stared at the player, “It was actually Asuna that figured it out.”  
  
A [Throwing Knife] landed on the table and Nezha flinched again, looking up, he saw the girl from a few days ago. He swallowed fearfully.  
  
“I should have recognized it,” she muttered, seating herself on the arm of [The Beater’s] chair, “But Nataku is the Japanese form and thus more common.”  
  
[The Rat] nodded, “Nataku, A boy god from,” she looked to [The Beater], “It was a Chinese Epic wasn’t it? Fengshen Yanyi?”  
  
Asuna nodded, “Or Houshin Engi,” she agreed, “In fact, you might even call him…”  
  
As one, the three turned to look at Nezha, “A Legendary Brave Hero.”  
  
Nezha gulped, he looked like he was facing death.  
  
[The Beater] gave him a stern look, “We aren’t going to kill you Nezha, killing you means that you actually die after all.” He leaned forward again, “We just want the scam to stop. Now, was it your idea or someone else’s?”  
  
“It, I,” what could he say?  
  
Asuna picked up the [Throwing Knife], “Here.”  
  
He reached for it, and missed. He let his hand drop to the table top.  
  
“I see; you’re blind in one eye then.”  
  
He shook his head, “I have lost my depth perception.”  
  
[The Beater’s] eyes narrowed sympathetically, “I see, you’re an FNC then, which makes it very dangerous for you to go out of the [Safe Zones].”  
  
He nodded.  
  
Asuna looked between [The Rat] and [The Beater], “F?”  
  
“It’s known to happen from time to time,” [The Rat] replied, turning to the other girl.  
  
“FNC stands for Full-Dive Nonconformity,” [The Beater] explained, “Sometimes there’s a glitch, that’s what everyone thinks is happening, it causes an error in communication between the NerveGear and the brain. Worst case is that the user can’t dive at all.”  
  
“Did one of the other [Beta Testers] have it?” Asuna asked.  
  
[The Beater] nodded, “Yes, they told us on the last day of the [Beta] and stated that they were not going to play the Full Game. Said it would take all the fun out of it. That just might have saved their life.”  
  
“It can happen to any of the senses,” [The Rat] continued, “In this case; both Nezha and the [Tester] lost their sense of depth.”  
  
Asuna nodded leaning on [The Beater’s] shoulder.  
  
[The Beater] smiled, “You have some really loyal friends, to stick with you through all this, tell us, are all the Legendary Braves in on this or is it just you? Who came up with the idea?”  
  
“…none of us did actually,” he admitted, having nothing left to hide, “We didn’t know what to do, I was useless with FNC, but they stuck by me anyway.”  
  
“As I said, you have some really good friends.”  
  
Nezha looked up to stare into [The Beater’s] now understanding eyes, “We’ve been together a long time, years and years in other games.” He smiled, “We were all so excited when SAO was first announced.”  
  
[The Beater] snorted, “I think everyone was.”  
  
He agreed with a nod, “We were going to rule the game, but then, I got FNC when calibrating my NerveGear, and all our plans were ruined.” He sighed, his shoulders slumping, “Orlando-san never turned his back on me though. And everyone tried to help me train.”  
  
“I wasn’t sure what to do, [Throwing Knives] would be useless no matter how much I trained it, I’d have to give up being a fighter.” He looked away, “Then, well, we’d fallen behind and wouldn’t be able to make up the difference. That’s when something really strange happened.”  
  
“Strange?” [The Rat] asked putting her elbow on the table and leaning forward, “How so?”  
  
“Someone came to us,” Nezha shrugged, “I couldn’t describe him, he wore a black poncho and kept his hood up, hiding his face in the shadows.”  
  
He carefully slid his hand along the table, picking up his throwing knife, “He said ‘If you’re gonna be a Blacksmith with battle skills, I got a real cool way to make some cash on the side!’ At first we didn’t want to do it. After all, taking those weapons deprives other Players of their safety nets. I’d already decided that I was going to kill myself should anyone figure it out.”  
  
He was about to get up when [The Beater’s] hand snaked out like lightning, “There’s no need for that Nezha.”  
  
“You made a mistake, there is a little bit of blame on your shoulders, since you decided to go along with it,” [The Beater] pulled Nezha back into his seat, “But it’s not your fault.”  
  
“How do you think your friends would feel if they learned you died?” Asuna added, “They respect you, and if you end it, how will you find redemption?”  
  
Nezha looked away, “What else can I do?” he blinked in confusion when [The Beater] opened his menu and started composing an IM.  
  
“A friend of ours has something that you might find useful, we’re seeing if she’d be willing to part with it after our Boss Fight.”  
  
“And if you stop this scam right away, we won’t let this get out,” [The Rat] gave him what she must have thought was a reassuring smile as [The Beater] got a return message.  
  
Opening it, he nodded on reading it through, “We’ll meet up with you after the fight, Nezha.” [The Beater] stood from his seat, “Just wait another few days.”  
  
Nezha nodded hesitantly, “Ok.” He still looked like death warmed over.  
  
Turning, the three left him alone in his Inn room.  


<<>>  


Three hours later, Kirito sighed as he sat on the bed next to Asuna’s sleeping form, he had leveled, but she hadn’t. He had no doubt that she’d level after the boss fight. He set one point each to STR, DEF, and AGI. His DEX and AGI were now equal with DEF being one point behind STR.  
  
Closing his menu a moment later, he turned, watching his partner for a few minutes, “Tomorrow, we meet and beat, hopefully, the next boss.” He lay down, ever so lightly brushing her hair out of her face, “We’ll win, and in the end, we’ll make it home.”  
  
He closed his eyes, falling asleep.  
  
Asuna opened her eyes and she smiled, “Kirito-kun cares too much to be [The Beater] I wish you would stop. It’ll destroy you if you let it.” It amazed her that people could be so callus as to hate someone for simply testing a game when the knowledge gleamed from them, outdated as it might be, was keeping them alive. “I’ll get strong enough to protect you, Kirito-kun, I promise. One day, you will be able to rely on me the way I rely on you.”  
  
She closed her eyes, following him into sleep.  


<<>>  


Kirito kept his eyes closed as he waited for the rest of the [Raid Group] to arrive.  
  
[The Rat] leaned against a pillar across from him, “You got us up really early, Kii-bou.”  
  
“I just didn’t want to be late Argo,” He pulled out a pork bun and dropped it into Asuna’s hand when she poked him for the third time.  
  
“Kii-bou, did you not allow A-chan to eat first?” [The Rat] asked incredulously.  
  
“My partner is just being stubborn,” he smirked, handing her his water skin when she pulled on his sleeve. “She doesn’t want to be awake yet, despite the fact that she knows she has to be. After all, Lind and Kibaou would likely not let us join the [Raid] at all if we were late.”  
  
“Isn’t the [Leader] position first come first serve?” Persephone asked hesitantly.  
  
“It’s supposed to be,” he agreed, “but Kibaou and Lind would never let me lead a [Raid] and that’s just fine with me.”  
  
“I still think they’re idiots for hating [Beta Testers],” Asuna grumbled, handing the water skin back and feeling much more awake now that she’d had breakfast.  
  
His laugh surprised them all, “None of us are going to argue with you, Asuna,” Kirito gave her his [Beater] smirk. “Not even a blind man would refuse a tested walking stick.”  
  
“Kii-bou,” Argo snerked, “we aren’t giving them a walking stick; we are offering to take their hand and lead them to safety with our Guide Books.”  
  
He nodded, his black eyes gleaming as Lind and Kibaou arrived at the same time. “Let’s see what the idiots will do.”  
  
There was a coin toss and from Lind’s fist pump, it was obvious who had won. As Kibaou sulked, Lind turned to the rest of the [Raid], “Alright, we’re here, let’s kill these things!”  
  
Together, he and Kibaou pushed the doors open and they all rushed through the doors.  
  
Kirito held his Party back for a moment, “Beryl.”  
  
“Yes?” the redhead’s eyes met his.  
  
“Keep an eye out for the [King], we do not know the conditions under which he will appear.”  
  
She nodded, watching as he and Asuna led the Party into the boss room. “Kirito-san, you remind me of someone,” she smiled, following them into the Boss Room, “Someone I love very much.”  
  
She pulled the Chakram from her belt and twirled it on her finger. She kept to the back, near the doors, her eyes never leaving Baran or Nato.  
  
Twice, she threw her Chakram, knocking them back, allowing the other Players to retreat and drag stunned, or paralyzed Players out of range of the rampaging Bosses. Her smile grew larger. “It feels good; being needed like this, being depended on.”  
  
It had been so long that she’d actually forgotten what this feeling had felt like. Since meeting Kirito, she’d felt as if he was evaluating her, and she didn’t want to disappoint any of her new friends. Even if they were all kids and she wasn’t. Beryl got the distinct feeling that of her new friends, Kirito was probably the youngest.  
  
More than anything, she wanted to return to that other world, to her fiancé, she missed him greatly. What did she need power for, when she finally had what she’d always wanted. “I just hope he waits for me,” she breathed, sending her chakram at Nato when she noticed that he was about to hit Persephone with his shock inducing attack.  
  
“Thanks, Beryl-san!” the younger girl called with a smile as she jumped back, the Taurus General now in the red on his last health bar.  
  
Suddenly, there was an Earth shattering roar, and Beryl’s eyes snapped to the center of the room, “Kirito-san,” she called, “Be careful!”  
  
The boy didn’t bother to give a reply, but she knew that the leader of her Party had heard her. In the confusion, he’d noticed Kibaou was too low on HP to be fighting anymore.  
  
“Kibaou, you need to fall back,” the dark haired teen called, racing towards the older man as Baran brought his hammer down, Kirito’s shoulder smashed into Kibaou’s side, sending them both tumbling. Kibaou came to a rolling stop just out of the range of Baran’s [Numbing Impact], but a shout of surprise revealed that Kirito had not been.  
  
Barely able to move his head, Kirito looked upward in quiet terror as Baran’s shadow fell over him. He couldn’t move, and he remembered from the [Beta] that getting hit with [Numbing Impact] a second time would cause paralysis. In this, or any battle really, it was a death sentence. Because, in Sword Art Online, you die when you are killed.  
  
He let his head fall to the floor, “I’m sorry Asuna, I guess I won’t be able to get you and the others home like I promised.” He closed his eyes gasping quietly for breath, accepting his fate, “I didn’t mean to lie to you…”  
  
Beryl grit her teeth, “No, I won’t let this happen!” she snarled, hurling the Chakram at Baran with as much force as she could. “Stay away from my friend!”  
  
While Kibaou stared at Kirito, as if he was just seeing [The Beater] as the kid he really was for the first time, unable to comprehend the fact that the one he’d treated so badly had just saved his life at the cost of his own; Persephone, Argo and Asuna were not motionless.  
  
Asuna sped towards her partner, her heart hammering in her throat, “No, please; let me get there in time!” she begged.  
  
Persephone just barely intercepted Baran’s Hammer with her Naginata and Argo barreled into the Taurus from the other side like a ton of bricks.  
  
Asuna slid to a halt and pulled one of Kirito’s arms over a shoulder, straining to pull him away from the boss. But her STR stat wasn’t high enough. She couldn’t move him. Seeing an extra pair of arms grab Kirito’s other arm gave her pause and she looked up, blinking in surprise. “K-Kibaou-san…” she couldn’t believe her eyes.  
  
But now that she had help, it was easy to drag Kirito back out of Baran’s attack range. They didn’t stop until they had him leaning against the wall.  
  
Asuna surveyed the room and the organized chaos the Raid Group created as they threw themselves at the only remaining mini boss.  
  
Another loud, earthshattering roar caught her attention, and she looked over her shoulder. The lump in the middle of the room that they hadn’t paid any attention to was shaking and unfolding. Her eyes widened as it slowly produced long spindly arms and stood on long cloven feet.  
  
Above its head, was its name: [Asterios the Taurus King].  
  
Asuna turned her eyes to Beryl; she was the closest to the [King]! She was the one most likely to draw its agro! “Beryl-san, look out! The [King] might target you first!”  
  
Asterios was even bigger than Baran! Beryl paled as she looked up at it, “It’s fine, Asuna-chan,” she called, “I’ll be alright, Kirito-san just beat Nato. As long as I don’t get hit, you can finish off Baran in peace.”  
  
Asuna bit her lip as her partner slowly regained his ability to move, “But!”  
  
“Let her do her thing, Asuna.”  
  
She blinked, looking down to meet Kirito’s dark, gold flecked eyes, “But she could die…”  
  
Kirito smiled as he pushed himself up, “She has a point. With the Chakram’s knock back effect, she should be able to keep Asterios from doing any damage to anyone.” He pushed himself to his feet, “meanwhile, we can take out Baran, the last of the Miniboss Squad.”  
  
Asuna took his hand and let him pull her up, grinning, “Are you going to get the L.A.B. or are you going to let me have it?”  
  
He chuckled as they began to run, side by side, “I’ll let you have this one, but we’ll have to share the one Asterios drops!”  
  
She laughed out loud as they attacked Baran, the last of his HP falling to her strike, “Sounds good to me!”


	4. (Elves and History)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Elven War Campaign continues.

Asuna ignored the little window that declared she’d gotten the L.A.B. “Alright,” She called loudly, “Let’s take on the actual boss! Since he’s the same type of mob, we shouldn’t have to change our strategies all that much if at all.”  
  
Kirito leaned forward, readying a Sword Skill, “Avoid his stunning attack, don’t pick up any weapons dropped,” he shouted as he and his partner started their first attack run, “If you have the [Quick-Draw] mod, use it to pull out a secondary weapon.”  
  
Beryl threw her chakram at Asterios when she noticed that he was getting ready to stun the members of her party that were in range. “We can do it!”  
  
The [Legendary Braves] were right behind them.  
  
Kirito watched the Hammer, doing some quick calculations in his head; his sword went right through the handle, “Switch!”  
  
Orlando of the [Legendary Braves] and Asuna took his place. Asuna striking the hand and Orlando slashing the king’s chest, “We’re with you, Sir Blacky!”  
  
Kirito’s eye twitched, the [Braves] had been calling him that all day; even though he’d only had it for a single day he still hated that stupid nickname! “Don’t call me that!” he snarled, “Asuna!”  
  
Asuna smirked, “Right,” She jumped from where she’d landed, “Black is your color though,” she pointed out with a teasing grin.  
  
He sent a halfhearted glare her way as they hit [Asterios the Taurus King] at the same time, “Maybe, but that doesn’t mean that people can call me ‘Blacky’!” he snarled flipping over the [King’s] head, slashing the crown on its head.  
  
He turned; eyes wide when the huge boss mob crashed to the floor. “Did I just stun the damned thing?” he wondered, trying to get his breathing under control. “Don’t just stand around!”  
  
He snarled, glaring at the unmoving players, “Take out as much of its health as you can before it gets back up!” he almost roared, springing back onto the minotaur and drove his [Anneal Blade] into its chest. “It’ll be easier to beat him if he’s not fighting back!”  
  
Kibaou jumped forward, “Let’s beat it!”  
  
With that, the rest of the Players leaped into action.  
  
Kirito grasped his sword and pulled it behind him as he ran off the chest, drawing a long line of red along behind him, revealing the computer generated grid underneath. He kept a close eye on the boss’s health bars, two left.  
  
He snagged the health potion Asuna held out for him, giving her one of his own in return, “Here.”  
  
“Almost done,” she huffed, gulping down the offered potion to top up her HP.  
  
He nodded, popping the cork and chugging his own potion, “Why did they have to add a third boss?” he groaned.  
  
“Maybe the Devs thought two were too easy, Kirito-kun.”  
  
He turned, “Heathcliff,” the teen muttered, “Didn’t see you in the last fight.”  
  
The taller man Kirito had called Heathcliff had long, steel grey hair tied back in a low ponytail, with only a single, chin-length bang falling to one side of his face. He was dressed in mostly red armor and was holding a tall white tower shield with a red cross painted across the surface and a ridiculous, (in Kirito’s not so humble opinion), long white cape flowing down his back. “I was too busy with something else or I would’ve been.”  
  
“Oh yeah, you were a G.M. in the [Beta], right?” the younger boy grinned, “Are you going to make the [K.o.B.] again when we get to the next floor?”  
  
“I might hold off on that this time, Kayaba-sensei was nice enough to give me access to the system again,” he stepped in front of Kirito and Asuna, shielding them when the minotaur got back up and began swinging his arms around again.  
  
“Yeah, what was with that speech anyway?” Kirito muttered as he thrust the [Anneal Blade] to one side, passed the shield to take a small sliver out of the boss’s last health bar. “We were promised on the last day that there would be no complications when the game officially started up.”  
  
“Apparently,” Heathcliff slashed with his own sword to give them some breathing room, “Some idiot managed to hack the code and added… I guess a Trojan is the best way to put it?”  
  
“How the heck could that have happened?” Kirito groaned near silently, smacking the hand that came at them with his sword, “Asuna, Switch!”  
  
Asuna snaked passed them striking it several times. “What’s a Trojan?”  
  
The dark haired teen grimaced, “The Trojan is a program that is inserted into someone’s computer that can cause a lot of problems, it looks like regular programing but it’s not, inside could be a virus or a worm, both of which can cause massive problems, to the point where you might need to defrag your computer or gaming console because either can destroy your machine.” He flipped above Heathcliff, “Sorry, she’s new to gaming, you were saying?”  
  
“This hacker inserted a program that would kill every single player upon the defeat of the game,” Heathcliff explained, slipping in front of Asuna to [Tank] for her, “As a result, he had to turn a lot of functions off.”  
  
“Hence Hard Mode with only one Life,” Kirito finished grimly.  
  
“Yes,” Heathcliff agreed with gritted teeth, “In fact, if I can get enough problems fixed, he might be able to turn the Respawn mechanic back on. But don’t expect anything like that happening any time soon. Or maybe even at all.”  
  
“Right,” the younger boy eyed the boss’s health, “Asuna, one more attack should do it!”  
  
Together they lunged, taking it out at the same time.  


**< <>>**

  
Kirito stretched as Asterios burst out of existence, “Ow.”  
  
“We can’t feel pain, Kirito-kun.”  
  
He looked up, “Maybe not,” he agreed, “but the numbness isn’t much different.”  
  
He felt someone take hold of his ear and pull sharply, “What the hell were you thinking?!”  
  
“Asuna, let go,” he muttered, taking a few small, awkward steps in his partner’s direction to keep the sensation to a minimum, “What are you talking about?”  
  
Asuna gave him a look of annoyance that he was going to become very familiar with over the next two years, “While saving Kibaou-teme is all well and good, you need to look after yourself too!” her eyes blazing with barely controlled anger, “You are the one who got the farthest in this damned game!”  
  
Kirito looked like he wanted to say something, but at the sight of Argo shaking her head over Asuna’s shoulder, he wisely closed his mouth again, saying nothing.  
  
“What would we have done without you?” Asuna finished, smacking his shoulder as hard as she could without doing any damage to his HP.  
  
He looked down, “Sorry Asuna,” he bit his lip, looking away from her.  
  
“Stupid, idiot, DUMMY!” she shook him by the shoulders, emotions running high, “You didn’t think did you?”  
  
He sighed, “I’m ok though,” he whispered hugging her gently, feeling her tense arms and shoulders trembling. “Let’s go open the next floor.”  
  
To the silence of the other Players, he guided Asuna up the stairs to the third floor.  


**< <>>**

  
He sighed once they were in the stairwell, away from prying eyes. He let go of her with one hand and opened his Menu.  
  
“You had better not dissolve our Party!” she glared up at him with tear filled eyes.  
  
He sighed, “Do you want Argo, Persephone, and Beryl to follow us, or would you rather we have our privacy so that you can beat me up and cry some more where it’s just us and you can keep your dignity?” He looked down, unable to bear the tears welling up in her eyes.  
  
Her shaking shoulders slumped, she couldn’t argue with that logic. “Go ahead then!” she spat, trusting him to invite her to a new partnership.  
  
Kirito nodded, dissolving the party, since there was no other way to get rid of the unwanted party members, and sending her a new party invitation.  
  
“You’ll show me how to do that later, right?” Asuna asked, accepting his invitation.  
  
“I will teach you, show you, everything in this game,” he promised her as she finally broke down.  
  
She hugged him as tightly as she dared, tears streaming down her face, “That’s good,” she agreed shakily.  
  
“We need to go, no doubt Kibaou will be right behind us in a little,” he pushed her forward, up the stairs gently.  
  
She was done crying when they got to the top of the stairs.  
  
“Feeling better?” he asked her.  
  
She nodded, “Much better, Kirito-kun.”  
  
“Good,” he pushed the door open, revealing the woodland he had been expecting.  


**< <>>**

  
Asuna couldn’t stop looking around, “The third floor is so pretty.”  
  
“I know, right?” Kirito smiled, “As soon as we open the gate, we have to head right back out.”  
  
“What for?”  
  
His gentle smile turned into a confidant and even eager smirk, “Why milady, [The Elven War Campaign]!”  
  
Asuna sighed, “Alright, tell me about these Elves.”  
  
He nodded, “Well, the [Dark Elves] are darkly tanned and are the first actual humanoid mobs that Players have to deal with.”  
  
When he turned to look at his partner, she was standing in a beam of light, the happy gleam in her eye and her woolen hooded cloak making her look like she belonged here, a frolicking dryad rather than the Human Player that she actually was. He was actually surprised that she wasn’t wearing her [Cloak of Moonlight], but to be fair, he wasn’t wearing his [Cloak of Midnight] at the moment either.  
  
“You, Asuna.”  
  
She turned to look at him, “Yes, Kirito-kun?”  
  
He licked his lip, suddenly feeling very nervous, “You look like you belong here,” should he admit it?  
  
She blinked, “Well, you look like you could belong too, like…” she looked away, “Almost like the human form of a Spriggan.”  
  
He stared, then laughed, “Funny, but I feel more at home here in Aincrad than I do back in that other world,” he let slip.  
  
“Really, why?” she looked back into his eyes.  
  
He shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets, “It’s not something I really understand; it’s not just me either.” Hadn’t Sugu, his sister, been just as jittery on some occasions? And his mom too (on those rare occasions that she’d been at home), now that he thought about it.  
  
She gave him a confused look, “What does that mean?”  
  
As if realizing he’d said too much, Kirito clammed up, refusing to answer as they walked farther into the forest.  
  
Understanding that he didn’t want to say anything, and realizing that she didn’t know him well enough yet to expect an answer out of him anyway, she tried a different tactic, “We don’t have to open the Gate you know.” She would let the matter drop, for the moment, but she wouldn’t forget.  
  
That brought a tiny smile back to his lips and Asuna rejoiced, because that tiny grin caused his whole face to light up. “Kibaou-teme and Lind-teme are sure to be done soon, why not let them open the Teleport Gate?” she slid her arm around his own, pulling him closer; “You were telling me about the Elves.”  
  
He pointed to a huge rocky outcropping in the distance, “If we go to the left, it will take us deeper into the forest, near where the first quest of the Campaign begins. While [Dark Elves] are not necessarily the stereotypical Elf that you normally find in fantasy, the [Forest Elves] are.”  
  
She blinked, “You mean like that old story of [The One Ring], “Lord of the Rings”?”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“Then, which side are we going to help?” she asked, her sharp ears picking out the sounds of metal clanging on metal, “What’s that?” she turned toward the sound.  
  
Kirito pulled her to a stop, his own sensitive ears picking up the sound as well. “That would be the sound of the first quest,” he started walking faster, turning off the path, “We’ll be helping the [Dark Elves], because Kizmel, the [Dark Elf] is a woman.”  
  
She followed him off the path, trusting him to know where they were going. “So we are, of course helping the [Dark Elves]?”  
  
“Who else would we be helping Asuna?” he pulled her behind a tree, “There they are.”  
  
She seemed to hold her breath as she peeked out from behind the tree, “When do we help?” she whispered.  
  
“As soon as possible,” he replied, eying the combatants, waiting for the perfect opening. “Just remember, they are both stronger than us, and even though we tried…”  
  
He looked down, “We were never able to save her life.”  
  
“Well, perhaps we will this time,” her eyes narrowed, judging, “Let’s go.”  
  
She blasted from behind the tree, rapier glowing brightly as she got between Kizmel and the other elf, pushing his sword up and away from his body.  
  
Kizmel looked up, staring as a pair of humans jumped in.  
  
“Kirito-kun, switch!”  
  
He dashed in from the side, taking out a good chunk of the [Forest Elf’s] HP, coming down on him with all the force of a battering ram.  
  
“One more, Asuna!”  
  
“I’ve got it!” with a battle cry, the girl with chestnut hair struck the [Forest Elf], killing him.  
  
Kirito gave Kizmel a smile as he caught Asuna’s shoulder, “You ok, Asuna?”  
  
She nodded, “I think so?” she caught her balance, “Thanks.”  
  
Kizmel watched them for a few moments more before kneeling to pick up the [Jade Key], “Thank you.”  


**< <>>**

  
YUI took a few deep breaths as she watched all the despair accumulate. Players were still throwing themselves off the sides of Aincrad. She swallowed, trying to keep the errors from stacking as she put together her next report for Cardinal, but she would not be able to handle this forever.  
  
“Why lock me up Master?” YUI wondered, looking up to the only holographic screen that was helping her keep herself together. Commander Kirito and Player Asuna were following NPC Kizmel and unlike all the other Players; they seemed to be having fun. “I can’t help them if you keep me here!”  
  
YUI’s avatar went staticky as she tried to keep herself together. When she returned to normal, she looked just slightly younger, her features becoming more and more like…  


**< <>>**

  
Cardinal looked up from the console, “Master,” she greeted.  
  
Heathcliff sat heavily in his large chair behind the desk and then put his head in his hands, “When we get out of here I’m going to kill those damned Devs,” he hissed.  
  
She blinked in confusion, “Are you talking about the [Taurus King]?”  
  
“What else would I be talking about?” Heathcliff nearly roared before coming back to himself, “Forgive me, Cardinal-chan, I have no right to take my frustrations out on you.”  
  
She bowed her head, “Were you able to get your message to the Commander?”  
  
“I was,” he rubbed at his chin, “I almost wish I’d made him a G.M.”  
  
She smiled, bringing up his Stream for them to watch, “He has certainly come a long way since the [Beta], where he almost never teamed up with anyone.”  
  
Kayaba turned his eyes to watch a replay of the boss fight, noticing something. “Cardinal, play back the first boss fight in a separate window and play the fights side by side, from the beginning.”  
  
The AI gave him a curious look but didn’t say anything as she turned back to her console to obey, “What are you looking for, Master?”  
  
“You’ll see.”  


**< <>>**

  
The dark purple haired Elf bowed to them, “Thank you.”  
  
Kirito bowed back in greeting, “It was our pleasure, are you alright now?”  
  
“Yes,” she paused, “Follow me please, I need to deliver this to the commander of the camp.”  
  
He bowed again, “Lead the way then, ah…” he pretended to not know her name.  
  
The Elf smiled, “My name is Kizmel.”  
  
“Lead the way then, Kizmel, we will gladly follow,” he stood straight again, stepping to follow the [Dark Elf].  
  
“Kirito-kun, are you sure?”  
  
“It’s fine,” he waved away her concern, “Now that we’ve saved her, the [Dark Elves] are our allies and just normal NPCs.”  
  
Asuna sent him a glare, how dare he wave away her concerns! Weren’t they legitimate? She snagged his arm and smacked him across the face when he turned curious eyes to her.  
  
He winced; “Asuna?” his hand went to his cheek.  
  
“Don’t disregard my concerns so out of hand!” she snarled, stomping passed him in a huff after Kizmel.  
  
He sighed, following behind his pissed partner, not quite sure what he’d done to deserve that smack, ‘Should have interacted with more girls in school…’  
  
Then again, he wouldn’t be here if he had. Perhaps this was better all around. He rubbed his numb cheek as he followed his partner. “One thing’s for sure though, I’d rather be here than anywhere else.”  
  
“Hurry up, Kirito-kun!”  
  
He tried not to blush when he caught her looking at him over her shoulder, then smiled, “I’m coming Asuna,” he called back, picking up his pace.  


**< <>>**

  
Persephone stretched, “That was hard.”  
  
Beryl nodded, “No kidding, shall we follow them?”  
  
Argo shook her head, her eyes narrowing, “No, let’s leave them be. We have some information to find for Kii-bou.” She opened her Menu, “He was nice enough to mark on my map where this NPC was.”  
  
She invited both of the older girls to a new party, “Maybe if we split up we’ll be able to find the information Kii-bou needs.” Argo eyed them both, “Persephone, once we’ve met with the NPC you can go looking for the story fragment on the first floor, if you like.”  
  
The older teen gave her a thankful smile, “I’ll do that, I don’t think I’m cut out to be a Clearer.”  
  
Argo nodded, turning to the young woman on her other side, “Be-chan, perhaps you should take up the mission of finding the fragment about King Thoth’s daughter?”  
  
Beryl blinked, the name striking a cord in her mind, “King Thoth, you said?”  
  
The youngest teen nodded, “That’s what I said, sa.”  
  
Beryl tried to remember why that name was so important, but it was just out of her reach, “That sounds very familiar but I don’t know why. And it’s going to drive me crazy until I remember now.”  


**< <>>**

  
Yuuki Kouichirou stretched as he entered the Hospital room, “Hey Asuna, I’m so sorry for getting you into this mess,” he apologized for what had to be the hundredth time. He felt like he couldn’t apologize enough to his baby sister, Yuuki Asuna. It was his fault she was lying in this hospital bed after all, he’d told her that she could check out his NerveGear any time she’d wanted. He just hadn’t expected her to try out Sword Art Online. Nor had he expected that Kayaba would do this to the people logging in to play.  
  
It should have been him in there! “I hope you found a Beta Tester to stick with Asuna, because I want you to live through this.” It was all he could hope for now. He’d been visiting every other day since the game began.  
  
He remembered Kirito from the Beta; the kid had been shy and didn’t form parties with others much at all, the only exception being for Boss Raids. But he was a good kid and Kouichirou was fond of him, he couldn’t be older than fifteen, and he had a feeling that he and Asuna would have become good friends should they meet. “If she’s picked anyone to cling to, I hope it’s Kirito.”  
  
He sat in the chair next to his sister’s bed and put his head in his hands.  


**< <>>**

  
Kirito simply smiled as he took the two scrolls, handing one to Asuna as the other disappeared into his inventory, “Sir, is there anything you need us to do?”  
  
The Elf shook his head, “Not quite yet, why don’t you go rest? You will have to share with Kizmel.”  
  
“We don’t mind, where can we get something to eat?”  
  
“There is a mess tent, and a bathing tent, should you want,” the commander replied.  
  
Kirito nodded, thinking, “Then we’ll take our leave for the moment,” he bowed, slipping his hand into Asuna’s and pulled her out of the tent. “So, what do you want to do first?” he turned to her with curious eyes.  
  
“Eating sounds like a good idea,” She covered a yawn, “then we should bathe and get some sleep. We can pick up the quest reward in the morning, right?”  
  
“Yes, that’s a good idea.”  


**< <>>**

  
Argo, Beryl, and Persephone looked over the tiny oasis, “So, this is where the NPC is, sa,” Argo’s eyes narrowed, “Strange, how Kii-bou found this place in the middle of the night.”  
  
Beryl turned to the Information Broker, “Well, we aren’t going to learn anything if we don’t move forward.”  
  
“A-and moving forward means meeting this NPC,” Persephone agreed reluctantly.  
  
“Then, we should get moving,” Argo decided, making her way down the shifting slope of sand.

  
**< <>>**   


Asuna tightened her grip on his, “Kirito-kun.”  
  
He turned to her, “Yes Asuna?”  
  
She bit her lip, “I wasn’t a [Beta Tester] so why,” what was going on?  
  
“Why what?” he stepped closer and she found herself leaning into his side.  
  
“Why does Kizmel seem to be so familiar to me?” she looked back to the Commander’s tent and then in the direction their guide had gone, “I really don’t get it, Kirito-kun, she shouldn’t be familiar to me.”  
  
He blew out a breath, “That is very strange,” he agreed, wrapping his other arm around her shoulders, eyes narrowing in thought. “Kizmel is an NPC so,” he stopped to think about it.  
  
His partner watched his pensive face, hoping he’d have some kind of explanation for her. “Can you think of any reason?”  
  
He shook his head, “No, let’s just say that it’s strange for now and leave it at that, because there are more important things we need to worry about.”  
  
She hummed in agreement as he started to lead her to the Mess Tent.  


**< <>>**

  
Argo’s eyes narrowed as she looked into the gently flickering, dimly lit passage way, “Kii-bou was right, this is disconcerting…”  
  
Beryl and Persephone both tensed, hands going to their respective weapons, “Is this place safe?” Beryl wondered aloud.  
  
“According to Kii-bou it should be,” Argo eyed the ground for a torch but couldn’t find one, “He said that “[The Historian] called this a ‘sacred place’ that the ‘monsters meant to train my ‘army’ could not penetrate’.” I’m guessing that means that this place is a [Safe Zone].”  
  
“[Safe Zone] huh?” Beryl frowned, “Are we going in or not?”  
  
“Let’s go, sa.”  
  
Beryl and Persephone followed the [Beta Tester] into the cave.  


**< <>>**

  
Asuna yawned after finishing her meal, “So, where’s the bathing tent then?”  
  
Kirito popped the last of his meal into his mouth, “Around here actually, would you like me to stand guard as you bathe?”  
  
She blushed, “You have to ask? This may be a safe place, but it’s no [Safe Zone]. I’d hate for a male Elf to walk in on me…”  
  
“I’ll stand guard then,” Kirito’s easy smile made her cheeks heat up and her heart race. “You have nothing to fear while you are with me, milady,” he teased.  
  
“Kirito-kun, you dummy…” she breathed, following him to the bathing tent.  


**< <>>**

  
The next morning they went to retrieve their Quest Rewards, a [Ring of Strength] and [Earing of Agility] respectively. Then they received their next quest.  
  
Kirito sighed as they exited the tent, “Just our luck that the next quest is in the same place as the quest to create a Guild.”  
  
“It’s in a cave right?” Asuna asked, Kizmel trailing behind them.  
  
“Yes,” he agreed, “I’m not sure we want to encounter other players though, so we’ll need to be stealthy.”  
  
“Well, lead the way then.”  
  
Half an hour (and maybe a few dozen spider mobs) later the party of three found the cave they were looking for, the only boy looked back at them, “Well, here we are, we’ll likely need some torches.”  
  
The human girl nodded, kneeling to pick up the two at her feet, “Will these do?”  
  
“They’re perfect,” he took one and lit it, holding it out so that she could use his to light hers. “Let’s get going.”  
  
The cave was dark and dank, with water dripping down from the ceiling, from high stalactites that could barely be seen in the flickering light of the torches.  
  
He pulled his partner down a side passage, “I think it’s down this way, but I’m not sure if I’m right or not, with how many subtle things have changed since the [Beta],” he breathed in her ear so that Kizmel could not hear.  
  
“And we’ve opened every chest we’ve come across,” she agreed, “I’ll follow your lead.”  
  
He nodded, leading them farther into the dungeon, pointing straight as he guided his companions to the left, “There should be stairs, in that direction, leading down, there’s a Field Boss down there. In the [Beta] it was a spider, for the next quest we need to kill it for a fang, but we don’t,” he stopped suddenly, his ears prickling as he turned to look behind them.  
  
“This way!” he snatched Asuna’s hand and pulled her into the side passage. He equipped his [Cloak of Midnight] and pulled her underneath it. Kizmel then opened her cloak and pulled the two Players close so that it covered them too. “We need to drop the torches.”  
  
“But why?” Asuna hissed in question.  
  
“Light will get us noticed.”  
  
The human girl swallowed, letting her torch drop to the mostly dry floor. She wasn’t surprised when his torch followed, both landing on dry ground, thankfully.  
  
Kirito leaned forward, activating his [Search] Skill, “Party of six,” he breathed, “Led by… Kibaou?”  
  
His partner grabbed the back of his cloak and pulled him back into their nook, just in time, “Dummy!” she scolded, clipping his ear and pulling him closer as the party went by.  
  
His eyes narrowed when he saw the last person pass then, an older boy, no, a young man, in a black hooded cloak with intricate chains hanging from it. His weapon was a large two handed axe.  
  
Once the other party couldn’t be heard, the grumbling and complaining about all the open chests fading to nothing, he let out a long breath in a relieved sigh, “Thank you Kizmel.”  
  
“It was my pleasure, Kirito,” the elf replied with a smile.  
  
“Well, now that they are gone, we can continue with our own quest,” he led them farther down the passage.  


**< <>>**

  
Kayaba sighed as he read through the reports that were coming in, “This is taking much too long for my liking.”  
  
He and Cardinal had been able to unravel the curse placed upon all the NerveGear so far, but it was taking too long.  
  
“Cardinal, can you check YUI’S program?”  
  
The silver haired AI pulled up a screen of complicated code, “You might have to let her out for a bit Master,” she reported, “YUI has been compiling more errors.”  
  
“We can’t, this was supposed to train an army remember Cardinal?” Kayaba huffed.  
  
Cardinal looked up from her station, “Yes, I remember Master.  


**< <>>**

  
[The Historian] turned to the sound of footsteps, waiting for whoever it may be.  
  
Beryl studied the walls, “This place tells a story.”  
  
“Kii-bou sent us to a historian, what do you expect, Be-chan?” Argo asked, looking over her shoulder at the Redhead.  
  
“I wasn’t expecting this,” the eldest Player replied almost to herself.  
  
Persephone shivered, “This place is creepy,” she complained.  
  
[The Rat] and her redheaded party member laughed.  


**< <>>**

  
“Once we get back, you should melt down your sword, Asuna,” Kirito told his partner as they traversed the cave system.  
  
The chestnut haired girl nodded, “That is a better idea, especially since upgrading [Wind Fleuret] just to melt it down several days from now is kind of a waste.”  
  
She bit her lip, “We’re [Vanquishing the Spiders] right?”  
  
“There are two parts to it,” he told her, not looking back, “We need to find something from one of the patrols for this first part.”  
  
“Does this mean we need to come back?” his partner sounded scared.  
  
“Maybe, maybe not,” he looked over at Kizmel, “Kizmel, what should we be looking for?”  
  
“Something like this broach,” she tapped the clasp of her cloak.  
  
He nodded, turning his eyes to the floor, “You mean this?” he picked something up off the floor and brought it into the torchlight. It was another broach, identical to Kizmel’s.  
  
The [Dark Elf] grimaced, looking genuinely sorrowful, “The Scout is not coming back, you should hang onto that, Kirito.”  
  
He nodded, opening his menu to put it away.  
  
Kizmel smiled, “Ah so that’s the Charm of Illusionary Scribing that allows you to store items away in your Mystic Tome.”  
  
He blinked, not sure how to respond to that, “Uh, yeah.”  
  
He shot a glare at Asuna when he heard her trying (but not succeeding) to not to laugh at his pathetic response.  


**< <>>**

  
Argo eyed the NPC as she, Beryl and Persephone ascended the stairs to the altar, “Kii-bou called you Setsuna?”  
  
The NPC blinked, “Are you referring to Commander Kirito?”  
  
Argo almost took a step back as the NPC laughed.  
  
“I should have known that you’d make your way here eventually, Spy Master.” She smiled, “What is your name?”  
  
“Argo,” the teen replied.  
  
“Well then, Spy Master Argo, where would you like me to begin?”  


**< <>>**

  
Kirito held out a hand to stop his partner and Kizmel, “You hear that?”  
  
“Is it those humans again?” the elf asked.  
  
“Sounds like it,” he agreed, “I think they found the Mother Spider.”  
  
Asuna grimaced, “I don’t like spiders very much.”  
  
“And you think I do?” he snarked back, raising an eyebrow at her.  
  
She blushed, pouting more than glaring at him.  
  
“Sh!” Kizmel pulled them close again as Kibaou and his Party came running passed in a panic.  
  
He began to smirk as the sounds of skittering began to get louder, “Who would like to squash a spider?”  
  
“You’re insane!” his partner hissed, “So, how should we go about it?”  
  
He laughed, slipping out from under Kizmel’s cloak, “Let’s lead it the way we just came from!”  
  
Kizmel sighed, “He reminds me of Serenity-hime, for some reason.” She’d always had crazy ideas too. Well, she had to protect these two until they parted ways so she might as well get in on it. “Weak points are the legs.”  
  
He slid one foot forward and bent his knees. He brought his sword back and held the hilt in a two handed grip and waited for the Sword to start glowing as one of his sword skills activated.  
  
He let his body move as the huge spider came into view from down the stairs, careful not to let out a battle cry since he didn’t know how far away Kibaou’s party was. He pushed himself into the Sword Skill, cutting off one of the legs, “Asuna, Switch!” he called.  
  
She sprang forward, slicing through another leg; then thrust into the body of the spider before pulling away.  
  
He sliced another leg. The spider had three Health bars, and the first was half gone, but they still had to take it out quickly. Thankfully, though also surprising, it did not take long to kill the Field Boss.  
  
“I think I’m beginning to hate this place,” Kirito muttered, sliding down the cave wall to sit down, panting rather hard.  
  
“You hate this place? That’s funny,” Asuna slid down to rest next to him, also breathing hard. “Did you get the fang?”  
  
“Let me check,” Tiredly, he waved his fingers to bring up his menu, “Remind me to take a nap when we get back to camp.”  
  
“I just might join you,” she replied, looking over his shoulder.  
  
Kizmel watched them with focused eyes, the boy was from her strange dreams and yet, this girl was also very familiar.  


**< <>>**

  
Kizmel got up from her corner of her tent and crept on silent feet to where the two human questers lay, cuddled together in sleep, “They really were that tired?” she wondered before smiling.  
  
Neither of them had bothered to climb under the furs of the bed, and the dark elf smiled as she drew one over them both, the girl, Asuna nuzzling closer to her partner.  
  
The boy, Kirito just pulled her closer with the arm he had wrapped around her waist, murmuring something comforting in his sleep.  
  
The elf smiled as she turned and left her tent. “Something about Asuna is very familiar indeed.” She made her way to the cemetery.  


**< <>>**

  
Kirito woke to find that Kizmel was not in the tent. He was still tired, but, he couldn’t just fall back to sleep, something about the [Dark Elf] was very different from the other NPCs he and Asuna had interacted with the whole game.  
  
Not just that, but he couldn’t remember any NPC acting this way in the [Beta] either.  
  
This time, he found it easier to slide out from under his partner’s rather comforting weight and replaced his chest with one of their many pillows. It was time to get to the bottom of this mystery.  
  
Taking a moment to equip his [Anneal Blade], and watch her sleep, he left the tent to search for their guide.  


**< <>>**

  
He found the [Dark Elf] not long after setting out to search for her. Looking around, he found himself in what seemed to be a graveyard.  
  
Kizmel looked up to him, “I wasn’t expecting you to be up yet,” she leaned back, a hand pressing against the ground next to a bottle of what appeared to be wine. “Sit with me, since you are here.”  
  
He knelt next to her, gazing at the tombstone. For some reason (he really couldn’t explain it), he’d always been able to read the made up language that was used here in Aincrad, “…Tilnel?” he turned to look at the sad elf next to him, “Who was she?”  
  
“My sister, she was an herbalist and was the apprentice of the camp Healer,” she paused, picking up the bottle, “this was her favorite kind of wine: Moontear Wine. It was a taste she shared with our beloved Princess Serenity.”  
  
That tone, something about it struck something in his heart, “What happened to Tilnel?” He filed ‘Princess Serenity’ away for later, now wasn’t the time to ask, Kizmel wasn’t in the right frame of mind to answer any questions not about her sister.  
  
The expression on Kizmel’s face twisted in grief, “She was cut down by one of the [Forest Elf Falconers].”  
  
After a moment’s hesitation, he slid an arm around her shoulders and let her lean on his, being the only silent witness to her tears.  


**< <>>**

  
When Asuna woke from her nap and didn’t see Kirito anywhere in the tent. Her eyes went immediately to the upper right corner, where her HP bar was. She sighed in relief when she saw that Kirito’s was still there (and still full).  
  
She was only starting to seethe when he entered the tent, followed closely by their guild. At the sight of him, she exploded, "Where have you been?”  
  
“With Kizmel,” he sat on the furs, “I didn’t mean to be gone so long, forgive me.”  
  
“You jerk!” she hissed. “So, we’re going to get our swords replaced?”  
  
“Yes, yes,” he agreed, getting back up. Opening his menu, he equipped his armor and cloak. “I’ll wait for you outside, Asuna.”  
  
“Dummy,” she muttered, also opening her menu, noticing Kizmel’s confused look, she sighed, “I wish he wouldn’t make me worry.”  
  
“What has he done?” the Elf asked.  
  
Asuna jumped, not really expecting to get a response, “Idiot saved another Player, who really doesn’t like him by the way, almost at the expense of his own life,” her lips twisted, “Really, what does he expect me to do if he dies?”  
  
The elf put a hand on her shoulder, “It seems to me that he cares about everyone around him,” she smiled, “I for one would encourage him when he behaves in this way, it’s what I would want in a husband.”  
  
Her whole face turned bright red as she remembered what the boy had said about this elf not acting like a normal NPC, “I-I don’t like him _that_ way!” she denied, but somehow, her denial sounded… false to her own ears.  


**< <>>**

  
One of Kirito’s eyebrows rose when his partner exited the tent with a red face, “Something happen Asuna?”  
  
“Nothing you need to worry about,” she muttered, “Now let’s go find that Blacksmith!”  
  
“Yes, My Lady,” he grinned, turning to lead his partner farther into the camp.  
  
Her blush deepened after he’d turned away and she finally noticed that not a single hair on his head was out of place, and that his clothes showed no sign of having been scraped against the cave wall from earlier. And, even after all that exertion, she didn’t smell any body odor, not from herself, and not from him either.  
  
They passed the bathing tent and the mess tent and it wasn’t long before they came across what they were looking for: an Elven Blacksmith.  
  
“After you Asuna,” the human boy gave her that charming smile.  
  
She bit her lip, nodding. Taking a step forward, she took a deep breath, “I would like for you to make me a new sword.”  
  
The blacksmith grunted as a menu came up in front of her and she began to navigate it slowly, first choosing the [One Handed Sword] category, followed by the [Rapier] sub-category. Then she paused, hands going to the sword at her side, “P-please melt this down into an [Ingot].”  
  
Her hands trembled as the elf took her sword and pulled it from the scabbard, nodding after a moment of examination and put it in his forge.  
  
A warm hand landed on her shoulder, “It’s alright, [Wind Fleuret] will still be with you as part of your new sword Asuna,” was murmured into her ear comfortingly.  
  
“That doesn’t mean that watching it be melted down isn’t hard!” she hissed back, scrubbing at her eyes to keep her tears from falling.  
  
“I know,” he replied, pulling her close, letting her use his shoulder to hide her tears. He watched the blacksmith, ignoring the sensation of wetness in his shirt.  
  
Asuna took a deep breath and turned back to the Blacksmith when he was done and set up everything she needed, putting the [Argentium Ingot] as the base of what her new rapier would be made of.  
  
She almost held her breath as he took the red hot ingot off the forge and began to hammer at it; ten then twenty hits and he didn’t look like he would stop soon. Thirty hits, and he stopped at forty strikes.  
  
She turned, hearing her partner’s sharp intake of breath, “Kirito-kun?”  
  
“The number of Hammer strikes matters greatly, Asuna,” his eyes narrowed slightly as he took the Rapier from the blacksmith to check its stats, “It has fifteen upgrade slots.”  
  
He shook his head, “This sword, the [Chivalric Rapier] is OP for this floor.”  
  
“…How long is it good for then?” she asked, taking her new sword and attaching it to her belt.  
  
“At least Floor 10,” he breathed.  
  
“Are you going to melt your [Anneal Blade] down?” she looked up with curious eyes, and it finally struck him how unnaturally perfect her face was.  
  
“Perhaps,” he shrugged.  


**< <>>**

  
Later that night, Kirito opened his eyes and looked down at the weight on his chest. Asuna was fast asleep, leaning into him for warmth. As much as he’d like to stay, he had a quest that needed to be done. Slowly, so as to not wake her, he held her head and wiggled out from under her, replacing his chest with a large pillow.  
  
Looking over to the other side of the tent, he could see Kizmel, also fast asleep, just like his partner. Taking a moment to re-equip his leather armor and his long sword, he silently left the tent. “Retrieve the [Lapis Key] huh?”  
  
He grinned, “I’ve done this several times, but I should be cautious anyway. Damned Devs,” [King Asterios] still fresh in his mind.  
  
Silently, he left the [Dark Elves] camp and checked his map, and the time. “Good, I should have enough time to be back long before Asuna and Kizmel wake.”  
  
He didn’t want to worry Asuna, which was why he could still see her HP Bar in the corner of his H.U.D, he wasn’t sure why, going Solo was having less and less appeal. But, sometimes, like now, going Solo was the easiest way to accomplish a quest.  
  
He looked around, using his [Searching] Skill to make sure he wasn’t being followed. With a nod to himself he slowly, silently made his way up to the cliff, where he was stopped by another Player.  
  
It was that Player from Kibaou’s Party, from when they’d been tackling the [Vanquish the Spiders] quest. What was he doing here?  
  
“Who are you?” he growled, hoping not to make much noise.  
  
The older young man smirked, “Name’s Morte, what do you say to a duel?”  
  
Kirito took a step back, wondering if he shouldn’t just return to the [Dark Elf] camp, “A duel? Why?”  
  
“Why not?”  
  
His hand closed around the hilt of his [Anneal Blade], that response, “Alright,” why was he agreeing? He needed to get the damned key!  
  
But before he could change his mind, a [Duel Request] opened in front of him with the conditions: [Timed] with [Half Health Mode] selected.  


**< <>>**

  
“Master, we have a problem!” Cardinal shouted from her station, tapping several keys to bring up the stream of [Commander Kirito]. Her face paled as she watched him contemplate the [Duel Request] in front of him.  
  
Kayaba came running into the room, “What is it Cardinal?”  
  
“The Commander is in a Duel, and I don’t like the look, or attitude of the other Player!”  
  
He stared at the holographic scene with red, tired eyes, “I should have known there would be P.K.ers eventually. This would not be a problem if not for that stupid…” he sighed, bringing up his G.M menu. How was Kirito supposed to prove to the Players (and himself) that he was the [Leader] they could rely on if he died this soon?  


**< <>>**

  
Having accepted the [Duel] to get the hindrance out of the way, it was more important to get the [Lapis Key] and return to Asuna and Kizmel, who should still be sleeping in the [Dark Elf] Camp, he slowly drew his [Anneal Blade] from its scabbard warning the other player in the clearing: “I’m not going to let you win Morte.”  
  
Morte snorted, exchanging his axe for another [Anneal Blade], “Who says you have a choice?”  
  
That combination of an about equal blade with an additional shield may prove troublesome. Perhaps more of a tank with the burden the shield poses agility wise. So build on speed to outmaneuver him? Not that he let these thoughts racing through him show as the timer slowly ticked by; convincing the opponent that you will win, faked confidence or not, is half the battle already after all.  
  
Instead Kirito simply smirked self-assured as he brought his sword up into a two-handed grip and slid his feet farther apart in response to his opponent’s weapon of choice.  
  
A confident and powerful stance. The near cocky smirk conveying that he doesn’t think him worth a response.  
  
Tensing up as the counter came ever closer to zero. And he could have sworn it should have reached zero already. And the next moment he already crashed into his opponent.  
  
Unfortunately Morte brought up his shield in time and kept his footing. Allowing him to bring down his other hand with the one hander on Kirito. Two quick steps to the side while pushing against the shield to gain some distance saw him dodge the falling blade.  
  
Apparently he was right about assessing Morte as more of a tank build with high strength stat.  
  
A quick jab at Morte’s face while his sword is still low from his last swing forced him to fall back some to avoid getting his face sliced open. Occupying him for a moment and giving his assailant enough time and space to circle to the left to directly aim attack on his unshielded sword hand.  
  
A loud clang ringing through the clearing when the two blades meet, Kirito kept them pressed together with both of his hands, yet again, he was unable to overcome his opponent’s strength like that. Angling his sword to break the stalemate before his opponent could, the two pieces of metal screaming torturously as they slid off each other and he slips past Morte, receiving a shallow cut on his right side and answering with a growl of his own.  
  
And not a moment too soon as he noticed the shield hand coming around where he stood just a second ago. Spinning around again to strike at the shield with another two handed blow and then quickly distanced himself again.  
  
This time he finally came out ahead. Draining more of Morte’s HP than he lost himself. The [Anneal Blade] may not be a two hander but when used as one there is still significant force to absorb for anyone attempting to block. Especially with the hard grinded level disparity he suspected lay between him and his opponent. Wearing Morte down with these quick yet powerful strikes before distancing again should be doable.  
  
And that is just what Kirito did. Sure he took some damage as well, though mostly minor with few exceptions, but he gave better than he got.  
  
Well into the fight a quick glance to the top during another leap back revealed to Kirito that was down to perhaps two thirds of his HP.  
  
That Morte’s HP bar was similarly depleted despite consistently taking heavier damage was testament to his ability as a tank to absorb damage like a sponge. Never the less Kirito slowly but surely managed to carve out an ever expanding lead on him.  
  
A feint here, meeting in a contest of strength there before unbalancing the opponent to land another strike and distancing again for breathing room. Rinse and repeat to chip down his HP safely while hitting his stride.  
  
Another opening created from his last strike, move in and… overextend?!  
  
Skidding from his aborted lunge he ripped up his sword, pouring in all his speed and then some, all but willing the sword into the path of Morte’s glowing weapon, the high powered skill obvious for all to see.  
  
Blocking a sword skill from such an awkwardly crouched position was a disconcerting experience. Kirito now could confirm that being on the end of that from another player is no less so. The bone jarring impact and numbness racing all over your body while everything strains to keep up the guard and not get flattened by the skill aimed at them while the steal protecting him creaked ominously under the force but luckily holds.  
  
Shaking off slight disorientation and initial shock from the attack and its implication he glanced at his HP gauge. Down to barely over half from where it hovered at comfortably one quarter before. That was a lot of damage for having blocked the actual strike.  
  
Refocusing on his opponent he caught glimpse of a look of shock on his face as well. Only for it to be replaced by a low chuckle while Morte pulled up from his position, “Managed to block and take that little damage from that? And here I thought I’d finish the fight. Let’s try that again shall we?”  
  
He cursed in his head, to let an enemy distract him and be too surprised to capitalize on the post skill freeze and end the fight.  
  
Wait a second. That _little_ damage? That strike could have very well killed him! The horrifying realization creeping up on him that the shock he saw was because of failing to carry out the strike and nothing benign he still had to ask, “What do you mean little damage?! That skill could have been lethal!”  
  
“Ah, but I was sure that someone of your… reputation would not die to such an attack. A mere duel striking you down..?” was his mocking reply accompanied by a raised eyebrow.  
  
And that was all the confirmation he ever needed; casting the whole fight in a different light. Not using the first strike rule and then chipping down HP passively until a single strike could potentially turn out lethal. All of that just to have him have an “accident” while lulled into treating it as “safe.”  
  
Well, no more holding back and making stupid mistakes. Every strike counts and was dangerous.  
  
Adrenaline that has just started petering out of his system started rushing through him again. Moments seemingly stretching into eternity.  
  
And then he launches at his opponent with an inarticulate scream. Crashing into his shield and aiming a strike at his head. Only barely pushed off again.  
  
From there things started to blur in a flurry of twirling steel.  
  
Every strike his opponent made was visible to Kirito’s sharp eyes. Even the swinging sword being tracked in its detail while he can tell from the impacts rattling his frame that they weren’t actually slow enough to allow that.  
  
And then, as suddenly as he unleashed this carefully calculated violence on his opponent it was over.  
  
Morte standing stock still, his blade lying a few meters from him. Arm still attached to the grip before it burst into polygons.  
  
The system declared him victor, and he absentmindedly checked the clock. The duel barely took three minutes. It felt so much longer than that…  
  
What a terrifying fight. There were cuts all over his arms and Morte was certainly off no better. He was surprised that he got out of the battle as he did. Though perhaps he shouldn’t be. All those attacks before Morte used that sword skill didn’t do as much damage as they potentially could.  
  
And with that realization crushing in on him while still reeling from the fight, anger at the callous attempt bubbles up.  
  
"Why?" he asked, tightly leashing the need to go for more drastic measures, "Why are you pitting the ALS and the DKB against each other? You’re a beta player too. We’re supposed to help each other more than ever! We all have the same goal: We all want to leave Aincrad alive. So stop it!”  
  
Morte said nothing, the look on the older man’s face made him realize something.  
  
Kirito grimaced, "...You're trying to provoke them into P.King each other..." he grit his teeth, his emotions shining though in the glare he aimed at Morte with such unbridled fury that the hairs on the back of the older man’s neck rose, “Your antics won’t be tolerated Morte. Stop trying to P.K Players!" he snarled.  
  
Morte spat at his feet, “I’ll get you eventually, [Beater],” he snarled, turning to disappear into the underbrush, pausing only to pick up his blade.  
  
"No you won't. And let me reiterate. Such behavior won't be tolerated Morte. The next one to attempt it won't get off as lightly as you did today. I will ensure it!" Kirito's quiet yet firm declaration carried to the beaten player who was scurrying away like a rodent.  
  
Kirito growled after him, angrily sliding the [Anneal Blade] back into its sheath with a little more force than he really should have. He winced, just glad his grandfather hadn’t seen him do that, he’d get told off, if not outright beaten with one of their Shinai.  
  
‘P.K’ing, it will only make it harder to get out of this [Death Game]. How many times will our victory be delayed because of sheer idiocy? How often will he have to remind others that this isn't a game you play?’  
  
Asuna! He had to keep her safe. Her, Klein, hell, even Lind and Kibaou and their guilds. "How am I going to keep them all safe from this, how am I going to get us all home... when I'm just one person and enemies just keep popping up?”  
  
Ruminating that problem while opening his inventory for a healing potion he was in dire need off.  
  
He definitely would have to give Argo a heads up that we now need to watch out for these types too! Morte especially. Damn, what is he doing? Messing around like that is no joke!  
  
A sigh escaping him he was about to unstopper that potion and down it when he got startled by a call of; “Kirito-kun!”  
  
He looked up, what was his partner doing here? “Asuna, I thought you’d still be sleeping…”  
  
He shrank back as his partner appeared out of the underbrush a fierce look on her face, Kizmel looming behind her. "What is going on? I saw your HP dropping and what are you doing here?"  
  
"Ah, just some grinding and this quest is simpler to do solo."  
  
Asuna's look quickly morphed into anger upon hearing that, no less intense though, "Evidently not if you take this much damage."  
  
"Well, it isn't," he started only to be interrupted by Asuna grabbing his shoulders.  
  
“I don’t want you to go anywhere without me!” staring unflinchingly into his eyes, "Your HP gauge draining woke me! How am I supposed to help you if you leave me behind?"  
  
He winced, "Okay, it could have gone better but I handled it didn't I?" Deliberately, he omitted the cause of this all for now. Definitely wouldn’t help right now.  
  
"But what if you didn't? What if there is something too big for you to handle on your own? Everyone gets surprised and I can't lose you to an accident in a stroke of bad luck!"  
  
Wincing again, he was keenly aware of the reality of the recent duel, and sighed before slowly encircling his partner in a hug, even going so far as to pat her hair reassuringly, "Okay, I won't go off on my own again if we can help it partner. I won't disappear on you. But sometimes we'll need to split up for a task, you know that."  
  
The tension seemed to melt off of Asuna upon hearing that, relaxing her arms from their grip on his shoulders to return the hug; "At least you can tell me before you go off into danger on your own."  
  
Humming in acknowledgement, he looked down when he heard a whispered "promise me?" from his partner, her face still resting on his shoulder.  
  
A murmured "I promise." was rewarded with a strained smile as she slowly pushed back from their embrace. Wiping what looked suspiciously watery from her eyes she firmed up her stance.  
  
"Well, then lets finish up this quest, I want to get some sleep still after we finish up!"  
  
He graciously chose not to comment that she could go to sleep and let him do it solo after this episode. Besides, after that fight a friend's reassuring presence was more than welcome.  
  
“Alright. Kizmel, can you stay here while Asuna and I go retrieve the [Lapis Key]?”  
  
Kizmel nodded, “Don’t take too long, Commander.”  
  
Kirito shot her a confused look before taking Asuna’s wrist and guiding her towards the [Forest Elf] camp and their objective.  


**< <>>**

  
Cardinal and Kayaba let out great huge sighs, “It is fortunate that we didn’t have to do anything,” the AI breathed, going back to the task she’d been in the middle of when she’d noticed the danger Kirito had been in.  
  
Kayaba just shook his head, “I’m going back to bed, wake me if anything else happens,” he closed his G.M menu and left the room.  
  
The AI watched him go, “I hope I can find who I’m looking for.” She looked back at Kirito and attached a note to his IP address, that response rate was amazing. Maybe it would be high enough for _that_ …  


**< <>>**

  
Kizmel smiled fondly as she watched her charges go off on their own, “This should allow the two to decompress without outside pressure.” She looked to the night sky and sighed, “Asuna reminds me more and more of the Princess the more I spend time with her.”  
  
She’d have to tell the Captain before she left for the next floor. “I wonder if the Commander has met Setsuna yet…” And no doubt the queen would be pleased, if they made it that far.  


**< <>>**

  
Once they’d retrieved the key, and their rewards from the Captain (two [Elven Magic Bag]s), Kirito fell face first into the furs of Kizmel’s tent. He was sound asleep less than a second later.  
  
Asuna sighed, “Dummy,” she mumbled, pulling one of the furs up and over him and herself. After taking a moment to make herself comfortable she looked into his sleeping face, “I promise, I’m going to get so good at this stupid game that you’ll never think to leave me behind again!” then she closed her eyes, and she too was fast asleep.  
  
Kizmel chuckled and shook her head, deciding instead to stand guard as her charges slept. She felt like she was on assignment again.  


**< <>>**

  
The next morning, he woke slowly, his senses turning on one by one, like a lazy morning in that other world. Asuna was at his side, where he was coming to expect her to be. He let out a huge yawn, looking down at her. “I still don’t understand why, what is it about Asuna that makes me so at ease?”  
  
He noticed the arm that had wrapped itself around his middle sometime in their sleep, and the one wrapped around her shoulders, holding her to his side as tightly as she was holding him. What was he doing? He didn’t know anything about Asuna, but instead of doing what he usually did, which was keep to himself, she’d forced her way into his life in this game.  
  
And, now that he thought about it, he really didn’t want it any other way. “Good morning,” he breathed when he felt her stirring.  
  
She hummed, “Good morning, Kirito-kun,” she said around a yawn. “What are you planning to do before we move on?”  
  
“I’m going to melt my [Anneal Blade] down and make a new sword out of it, when I checked it after my duel with Morte, it was almost done. I’m going to replace it before I lose it.”  
  
Asuna let go of him and sat up, “I’ll go too.”  
  
He chuckled, “Alright, then we can get breakfast.”  
  
She nodded, extracting herself from the bed, “Let’s go!”  
  
He smiled, following her out of the tent.  


**< <>>**

  
“Fickle Blacksmith, but he should be able to do something with my [Anneal Blade],” Kirito sighed as he pulled his nearly used sword from its scabbard and handed it over the [Dark Elf] by the forge, “Please melt this down into an [Ingot].”  
  
The elf snorted as he had when making his partner’s sword, and he could feel Asuna leaning closer in a silent show of support. A few moments later, the elf put a jet black ingot in front of him.  
  
Kirito found that he was surprised as he tapped the rectangular block, “[Obsidian Ingot],” he breathed.  
  
“But wasn’t the [Anneal Blade] grey?” Asuna asked from his side.  
  
“It was,” he agreed, “So why did I get a black [Ingot] out of it?”  
  
He turned his attention to the menu in front of him and selected the [One Handed Sword] category, then chose the [One-Handed Long Sword] sub-category. He then set the [Obsidian Ingot] as the base and selected several other materials to enhance it, shooting for the best sword he could. Finished, he took a deep breath and pressed [OK]. He let out a long breath as the Blacksmith took the [Ingot] and all the materials and threw them all on the forge.  
  
This time, his partner reached out and took his hand, giving it a squeeze, another of her silent shows of support.  
  
He watched stoically as the [Ingot] began to glow and the Blacksmith take it off the fire. Kirito gave Asuna’s hand a squeeze, silently counting the hammer strikes: ten, twenty, thirty… the Blacksmith again came to a stop at forty. Whatever this sword was called, it was just as good as his partner’s [Chivalric Rapier].  
  
He held his breath as he took the [One-Handed Long Sword] from the male elf and tapped his new sword: “[Dark Sun]? Well these stats are good, Durability and sharpness are both high, and… is that an AGI boost?” He turned to his partner, sliding the sword into its scabbard and opening his menu to equip it, causing it to disappear from his hand and appear behind his right shoulder. “I’d say that this sword is just as good as yours Asuna, it’s also got fifteen upgrade slots.”  
  
“That’s good,” she grinned up at him, “So, where to next?”  
  
He put his chin in one hand, looking thoughtful, “I need to contact Argo about what happened last night, so I’d say that we need to head back to town.”  
  
His partner was reluctant, but she agreed, “Alright, we’ll be able to come back right?”  
  
“I think there’s still one more campaign quest left for us to do on this floor,” he replied, at her annoyed look he raised his hands in surrender, “It’s one that we can do as a team, don’t worry, but before we do that I need to stock up on potions.”  
  
“When can we start finding the Crystals you were talking about?” she asked, following him out of the camp.  
  
“They should become available on either the next floor or the one after it,” he returned easily.  
  
“So Floor Four or Five?”  
  
He nodded as they entered the forest proper, and then stopped short, “Wolves, be ready Asuna.”  
  
She nodded, and in eerie tandem, she drew her rapier at the same time as he pulled his own sword.  
  
One hit from her blade was enough to have the last wolf calling for reinforcements. It took them a good ten more minutes to kill the wolves that had shown up.  
  
He sighed, “I’m glad that there was no chance to get a second howl in there,” he took a moment to admire [Dark Sun], it’s dark grey (a few shades darker than the [Anneal Blade] had been) blade shown in the artificial sunlight of the game. It was in direct contrast to Asuna’s silver [Chivalric Rapier].  
  
“…You know, your sword reminds me of a [Sun Spot] now,” came his partner’s voice from over his shoulder.  
  
He blinked, turning to her. “You mean the places where the sun is cooler than usual?”  
  
She nodded, “You are dark, sheathed in black, yet as intense as a star…”  
  
Kirito found he had to quickly look away when he felt his cheeks warming up. How was it that she was able to fluster him so easily? “As if you’re any different,” he breathed, “You’re graceful and bright and gentle, like… Luna, the moon.”  
  
He didn’t see it, but his partner was blushing just as much as he was now.  


**< <>>**

  
The first place they stopped was the Potions Shop, so that Kirito could stock up, “So,” he looked up at his partner from the corner of his eye as he browsed the stock, “I heard that the DKB and the ALS were going to meet about the boss fight after we entered town.”  
  
“I’m not surprised, we’ve spent all our time in the [Dark Elf] camp, I’m glad that we managed to dissuade them from also doing the campaign though, that would have made our lives that much harder,” he tapped the [Health Potion] and then set the number he needed, “The boss now has poison, do you have enough [Antidote Potion]s?”  
  
She opened her menu to check, “is 16 enough?”  
  
Absently, he checked his own stock and hissed when he realized that he didn’t even have that many, “I’m not sure, but I need more.” He scrolled through the Shop Menu again and highlighted the [Antidote Potion] and bought fourteen, then sent four to Asuna, “This way we have an even 20 each.”  
  
She accepted the Trade, “Have you contacted Argo yet?”  
  
“If Kibaou and Lind don’t do anything stupid then I’ll do it tonight,” he pushed off the counter, “We’d better go attend that meeting.”  
  
She laughed in agreement, a step after him as they left the shop.  


**< <>>**

  
Kirito hissed in relief when the Boss finally burst into those Polygons, he half expected Asuna to scold him again, seeing as he’d again put his life on the line for someone else, Lind this time.  
  
Her tight embrace wasn’t what he’d expected. “Kirito-kun, let’s go!”  
  
He smiled, “Alright Asuna,” he let her pull him up the stairs and out of sight.


	5. Does Anyone Feel the Christmas Cheer?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first Christmas of Aincrad.

 

Kirito’s eyes were wide as he saw how different this floor was from what he remembered, “…Water?”  
  
Asuna turned, “It wasn’t like this in the [Beta]?”  
  
He shook his head, “No, it wasn’t, this probably means that the boss’s type has changed too…”  
  
Before them was a large, rushing, deep river. Over it was a tree with strange looking fruit. “Fourth Floor huh?” he sighed, reaching up to pick a fruit, “Huh, these things look like doughnuts.”  
  
His partner picked another one, “These are strange.”  
  
“No kidding,” he chuckled, blowing air into his. He dropped it in surprise when it popped into a [Floaty Tube]. He blinked, “It’s…”  
  
“An Inner Tube?” his partner leaned down to pick it up, “This is a stupid pool toy, why the heck is it here?”  
  
“Search me,” he muttered, eying the river, “If the addition of water is the only change, other than, obviously the mobs…”  
  
His eyes narrowed, “The main city of the floor should be down that way.” He pointed along the river. “…It looks like we’ll need to get wet.”  
  
She grimaced, “I’d rather a boat.”  
  
He nodded in agreement, “Me too, Partner, but likely we’ll only be able to get one in town.”  
  
Her lips twisted in some emotion that he couldn’t identify right away, “So, how are we going to get to town then?”  
  
“Give me your fruit,” she dropped it into his hand and he blew into it, inflating it almost instantly.  
  
“Will we float?”  
  
“I think we might need to strip actually, all our gear weighs a lot and the [Swimming] mechanic is weird.” He opened his menu and turned to his Inventory, to see if he had anything that could lash the tubes together.  
  
“How does it work?” she crossed her arms over her chest, watching as he pulled a length of regular rope from his Inventory.  
  
He knelt, wrapping one end of the rope around the blue one he’d picked from the tree, “Well, it’s [Stamina] based, and that wouldn’t usually be a problem. Since lots of games have a [Stamina] mechanic of some kind; things like [Stamina] bars under your HP Bar like in the old Fallout games, or Elder Scrolls.” He tied the end of the rope as tight as he dared before moving onto her yellow one, “SAO however, is different, because it doesn’t _have_ a [Stamina] mechanic like that. Of everything we [Beta Testers] did to get all the glitches we could find, we could never figure out how to fix it.”  
  
“So, there’s nothing obvious?” she asked as he finished tying the tubes together.  
  
He nodded, “The problem is, we don’t have enough to swim all the way to town without these things.” He went to unequip most of his gear when a thought crossed his mind.  
  
He turned to look Asuna in the eyes, “You have [Tailoring] could you make us some swim suites?”  
  
“I think it might be high enough,” she agreed, “Let me see what skins and things we have, I’d rather still have some kind of protection. Especially since we have no idea what mobs will be on this floor now.”  
  
He nodded, sending the skins he’d picked up to her in a trade.  
  
Looking through the hides and skins, she checked their descriptions before picking some that she thought would work best. She pulled out her [Tailoring] equipment and got to work. “Should we keep our swords equipped?”  
  
He hummed in agreement, “Yes, they’re heavy, but I’d rather not have a mob take a bite out of any limbs."  
  
Asuna nodded, throwing him a pair of dark grey shorts with a black sun outlined in silver thread on the right hip. “Here, that’s yours.”  
  
Kirito blinked down at it, “Thanks Asuna,” he disappeared behind the tree and hastily equipped it.  
  
She took everything off and equipped her own off white one-piece suite. Hers had a white upturned crescent moon outlined in black thread. Then she pulled her sword back out and put it back on her hip. “I’m glad we were able to get our swords to +5 with that stuff you got off [Nato].”  
  
“So am I,”  
  
When she turned to look at him, she could feel her face turning red, he looked good in those shorts, and with his sword belt over his bare chest, “Um… you look nice…” she mumbled, quickly looking away from him.  
  
“…You as well…” he struggled to get out. How was it that every time he turned around she got cuter, _prettier_? How?  
  
She picked up her tube and put it on the water, carefully getting in, “You know; I was so happy to be able to actually have a bath that I didn’t care before but now…”  
  
“The water feels off?” he asked, putting his own tube in the water and climbing in, “I know; it’s just another thing that reminds us that this place isn’t real. As much as it might feel like home.”  
  
She nodded, reaching over to take his hand, “I have an idea.”  
  
That spark in her eye intrigued him, “Oh?”  
  
“Let’s time how fast we can get to town!”  
  
His grin grew to match hers, “Ok, ready?”  
  
“Set,” she continued, tensing up.  
  
“GO!” they shouted together, laughing merrily as they started swimming as fast as they could.  


* * *

““I am she that is the natural mother of all things, mistress and governess of all the elements, the initial progeny of worlds, chief of powers divine, Queen of heaven, the principal of the Gods celestial, the light of the goddesses: at my will the planets of the air, the wholesome winds of the Seas, and the silences of hell be disposed; my name, my divinity is adored throughout all the world in divers manners, in variable customs and in many names, [...] Some call me Juno, others Bellona of the Battles, and still others Hecate. Principally the Ethiopians which dwell in the Orient, and the Egyptians which are excellent in all kind of ancient doctrine, and by their proper ceremonies accustomed to worship me, do call me Queen Isis.” Hm,” Argo gave Beryl a stare, “Where did you find this?”  
  
“Near where the [Extra Skill] quest was,” Beryl shrugged, “There’s more too.”  
  
“More?” She took a deep breath, “Ok, lay it on me.”  
  
The redhead nodded, “It is said in the tales that Queen Isis was the first to teach the people of the kingdom how to use magic,” Beryl recited, “She was the one to tie the Senshi to their planets, creating the Royal lines of which the Senshi were descended from.”  
  
Argo’s fingers flew across the keys of her holographic keyboard as she listened to the older woman speak, “What about Persephone, has she found anything yet?”  
  
The woman shook her head, “Not yet, and I don’t think we should send anything to Kirito-san until we have more to show for it. …Shall I start searching the third floor?”  
  
[The Rat] nodded, “And while you are doing that, I shall be heading to the fourth floor,” she closed her menu, “Kii-bou PMed me earlier, the floor is almost completely different to what was in the [Beta] I need to see what I can find so that I can fix up the Guide Book so that it’s right.”  
  
Beryl nodded turning to leave, “I’ll see you later then, Argo.”  
  
When the woman turned back, Argo was gone.  


* * *

  
Asuna collapsed on the bank of the river just inside the [Safe Zone], “I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared.”  
  
“…A Tadpole, a stupid Tadpole,” her partner hissed angrily, sighing, “I think I hate the mobs on this floor.”  
  
“So slimy,” she agreed with a shiver, “Let’s not do that again.”  
  
“I’m with you,” he agreed.  
  
She stretched, “How about we just lie here for a bit and dry off?” she rolled over and gave her partner an impish grin.  
  
“Alright,” he agreed, his back arching as he too stretched his arms. Their eyes met again and then they once again laughing. As he concentrated on the sound of his partner’s laughter, Kirito couldn’t help wondering how he’d survived all the games he’d played Solo in, especially when playing with a partner was so much more fun.  
  
He froze when he felt arms wrapped around one of his own and he looked down to see his partner snuggling into his side.  
  
She lay her head on his chest and smiled up at him, “Can we just, nap here?”  
  
How the heck was he supposed to say no to that? He gave her the softest smile he could and nodded, “Anything you want, Princess.”  
  
“Don’t call me that,” she muttered softly, drifting off to sleep.  


* * *

  
Cardinal blinked when she noticed something, there was a stream going to an outside computer. Had one of the [Beta Testers] forgotten to turn it off? They must have, but she had no time to deal with that, unraveling the curse was already taking up most of her time. And besides, no other streams could be created now. Still, she set it aside for later.  
  
She could find out which Player it was connected to later.

  
When he woke an hour later, his partner had almost wrapped herself around him. It made him feel almost too hot. She looked too cute to wake, but if they wanted to get stuff done today than they had to get back up and get to work, “Asuna, wake up, my lady.”  
  
Asuna shifted, snuggling closer and hiding her face deeper in his chest, “Five more minutes Kou…” she mumbled sleepily.  
  
‘Kou’? Who was that? “Asu-hime,” he shook her gently with one hand this time, “It’s time to get up, I’m starting to get hungry.”  
  
She yawned widely, blinking. She wiped the sleeping sand away with a hand, “…Kirito-kun?” she sat up, blushing almost painfully, “I-I thought you were my brother!”  
  
“What did you just call me?” she hissed angrily after a moment of silence.  
  
He blinked rapidly, “…Asu-hime?” he’d taken that bit of teasing way too far, hadn’t he?  
  
A warmth seemed to explode in her chest and her blush deepened several shades. “…Alright. I’ve decided,” She squeaked, “No one else can call me that. Ever.”  
  
Kirito’s cheeks darkened, his blush almost matching hers. “We should get going.”  
  
She jumped away, almost as if she’d been burned, looking for something to hide behind. “Yeah but, don’t we need to put our armor on?”  
  
He stood and held his hand out for her to take, “Yeah,” he pulled her to her feet and pointed to a nearby building, “That’s an inn that we can use to get changed.”  
  
She nodded, cheeks still red as she followed him inside.  


* * *

  
Cardinal gritted her teeth as she worked on trying to unravel more of the curse, “Master said this would be hard…” she bit her lip, checking her progress, “What if I did…?”  
  
“Cardinal, what are you doing?”  
  
The AI froze, “Just trying to fix this next part of the code Master,” she struck a few keys, bringing up a readout of her work.  
  
“Ah, that’s what’s hampering the [Unique Skills],” Kayaba grinned, “It looks like you are getting close to freeing one up, Which one is it?”  
  
“[Divine Right] is the closest to being freed, followed closely by [Holy Sword] and one other,” she turned to him, “That’s the one for the Princess, if she’s here, right?”  
  
He nodded, “Yes. You seem confused, what is it?”  
  
Her expression twisted, “If it’s for the Princess, Master, why is it not tied to any Avatar yet?”  
  
“Because I don’t know if she's even in the game, much less who the Princess is yet Cardinal, I wish I did.” He shook his head, "It would certainly make finding her easy if she were one of the original 10,000 Players..."  


* * *

  
Klein stretched, “Finally made it to Floor Three!” he turned to his friends, “Seriously guys, why did you take so long?”  
  
Dale sighed, “Dude, you’ve been hurrying us, why?”  
  
Harry One and Dynamn both nodded.  
  
Klein pouted, “I want you guys to meet Kirito, he’s the one who taught me to play.”  
  
“And where is he now?” Harry One asked.  
  
Klein opened his Menu and went to his Friend List, becoming very frustrated, “He’s already on the next Floor!” he moaned.  
  
His friends laughed as he sent the younger Player a PM.  


* * *

  
Kirito blinked when he got that nudge that told him he had a PM waiting to be read and turned away from the Inn menu, where he’d been looking at rooms to rent. “Who would send me? Wait, I told Klein to PM me if he needed something didn’t I?” he chuckled, knocking his own temple lightly with a knuckle.  
  
“Kirito-kun?” Asuna gave him a curious glance from where she was sitting, in a chair by the table nearest to the bar where he was standing, “What’s going on, have you picked a room for us yet or not?”  
  
“I’ve almost decided on one,” he told her, “Hang on just a sec, I’ve got a PM that I need to read.” He tapped the icon.  
  
_Kirito,_  
  
_Where are you? I was hoping to meet up with you soon. Have you changed your mind about meeting my other friends? We’re on the Third Floor now._  
  
_Klein_  
  
He chuckled, “Asuna, how would you feel about meeting a friend of mine?”  
  
“I’d love that,” her eyes brightened, “But you’d better get us a room first. The best one here!”  
  
“As you wish, Asu-hime,” he replied, turning back to the NPC Owner of the Inn, “After this we should open the Floor to those [Below].”  
  
She nodded in agreement, falling silent to watch him again. She was still thinking about Kizmel. She missed the [Dark Elf], “Ne, Kirito-kun, it’s almost Christmas, isn’t it?”  
  
He stopped, thinking back and did some mental math, “Yes, it is actually,” he laughed, “I hadn’t realized how close it was.”  
  
She pulled her feet up onto the chair and wrapped her arms around her knees, “This will be our first Christmas on our own… without our families…” she tried to wipe her tears away, “Funny.”  
  
Kirito turned to look at her fully, “What’s funny?”  
  
Her smile was sad, almost brittle, “I was going to tell Kou that I wanted to start playing games with him,” her breath hitched quietly, “He did tell me that I could use his NerveGear any time after all. I just didn’t think that I’d be monopolizing it…”  
  
The mention of ‘Kou’, who was surely her older brother, just made him think about his own little sister, “I’d actually been contemplating taking Kendo up again, with how much fun the [Beta] had been,” his chuckle, his smile, was just as broken, as brittle as hers, “I was planning to surprise Sugu and Grandfather, by asking if I could resume the lessons I’d dropped,” he tried to blink the tears away but found that he couldn’t.  
  
“…I guess that can’t happen now…” he reached up to wipe the tears away.  
  
She surged out of her chair and wrapped her arms around her partner, allowing him to hide his break down in her chest the way he’d allowed her up to this point. “It’s OK, Kirito-kun, we can surprise them when we beat the game and get out of here,” she closed her eyes, resting her chin atop his head. She almost couldn’t feel the shaking of his shoulders and arms as he clutched at her shirt and vest. She closed her eyes, playing with his too perfect hair and rubbing circles on his back.  
  
“But how long will that take Asuna?” was his muffled question, “It took us a _whole month_ to get to the second floor and it took another _two weeks_ to get here, to Floor Four. At this rate it’s going to take more than a year. _A year_ to get even half way to the top Asuna!”  
  
“I don’t know how long it will take, Kirito-kun, but we can’t give up,” she tried to sooth him, “If we give up… Kayaba wins, because then, this [Death Game] will _never_ end.”  
  
He nodded, staying silent as he did his best to pull himself together.  
  
She bit her lip, her partner, Kirito; he had to be younger than she was. He couldn’t be much younger, perhaps a little over two years at most, but what was she doing? He should be relying on her; she shouldn’t be leaning on him, at all! She wanted to ask, but that would be rude, right? So she didn’t.  
  
She just kept soothing him, because he’d been her rock whenever she’d lost it. Now it was her turn to be his. “Kirito-kun, I promise, one day I will be strong enough to stand beside you, and then nothing will stand in our way of getting home.”  
  
Kirito’s eyes snapped open, “No, I promise you, Asuna, I _will_ get everyone out. If I have to, I will do everything I don’t like doing; that I feel I can’t do. Because _we don’t belong here_.”  
  
She bit her lip, “Alright, but you’re my partner; I don’t want to be a burden on you.”  
  
His determined eyes met her shocked ones, “You have _never_ been a burden to me, Asu-hime.”  
  
She turned away; trying to hide her blush, “Even so…” she had no idea what to say to that. Kou and her parents were all workaholics really, she wasn’t used to being First in anyone’s priority. Sure, Kou tried, but he didn’t have a lot of time for her, and she knew that he would rather play his games.  
  
He smiled again, but it wasn’t that brittle, broken thing from before, this was a smile full of confidence, “Even if this game takes years, I promise to return you to that other world, where you belong.”  
  
She giggled, “Secure our room already, you dummy.”  
  
He gave her a salute before turning back to the Inn’s menu and picked the best, biggest room he could. Then he turned back to the PM he’d gotten from his first friend in the game and sent him a short reply.  
  
Then, he took her hand, “Let’s go open the Floor.”  
  
“Un,” she agreed almost happily, the gloom and sadness of the last few minutes forgotten, for the moment.  


* * *

  
Klein grinned when he got a PM back a lot sooner than he thought he would, “Awesome! He’s going to Open the floor!”  
  
“Are we really going to meet this guy?” Dynamm whispered to Dale.  
  
Dale nodded, “Seems so.”  
  
Harry One rolled his eyes, “Klein is being very strange about this kid…”  


* * *

  
Asuna knelt at the Teleport Pad, tapping where she remembered her partner had on the second floor, “Ok, here goes.” She tapped the [Yes] to the question that asked if she wanted to connect the Teleport Pad to the floors below.  
  
“Good job,” Her partner grinned, “Now, shall we wait for my friend or would you rather go questing?”  
  
“Let’s meet your friend first.”  
  
Kirito nodded silently, “Alright.”  
  
Already, the square was filling with people. His sharp eyes easily picking out his first friend’s distinctive red, messy hair. Smiling, he took his partner’s hand without realizing it and pulled her through the crowd, “Klein, good to see you again, I see you found your friends well enough.”  
  
Klein’s mouth broke into a huge smile, “Kirito!”  
  
He brought up a hand and made a fist, meeting the older Player’s in a fist bump. His smile turned serious, “How many did you start with?”  
  
Klein’s grin faltered, “What?”  
  
“How many friends did you log in with?” Kirito repeated, “Have you _lost_ anyone since we parted ways?”  
  
“Klein, what’s he talking about?” Isshin asked.  
  
“He wants to know if any of our Guild were part of the 2000 in that first month,” Klein turned to the teen, “Right?”  
  
Kirito nodded, “Just so, there’s a lot of hate being directed at the [Beta Testers], simply because Kayaba is not here for them to hate on.”  
  
Klein nodded, an expression on his face that Kirito couldn’t identify. He gestured to a man on his right that was tall and broad shouldered, “This is Dale.”  
  
Dale and Kirito exchanged quiet bows.  
  
The red head pointed to Dale’s left, “This is Harry One, next to him on the left is Dynamm, and then Isshin.”  
  
He gestured to his right, “And this here is Kunimittz.”  
  
He turned to his friends, “This kid here is Kirito, he’s the one who taught me to use Sword Skills.” He put a heavy hand on the younger Player’s shoulder  
  
Kirito chuckled, giving them a slight wave, “You make it sound like I did something special Klein,” he shrugged the hand off, pulling his partner closer, “I really didn’t do anything that the rest of the [Beta Testers] are _supposed_ to be doing.”  
  
Klein blinked when he finally noticed Asuna partly hidden behind her partner, “Oi, who’s this?”  
  
Asuna blushed, ducking down slightly before letting her partner pull her into full view at his side.  
  
“This is Asuna, this is her first game, period,” Kirito gave her a confidant smile; “She is also my Partner.”  
  
She bowed to them all to hide her blush, “Pleased to meet you all,” she breathed.  
  
Klein just blinked down at her for a moment then sighed, “And now there are _two_ that we have to look after…”  
  
“You haven’t answered my question Klein.”  
  
“Which one?” he asked, covering his face with a hand.  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed, reaching up, he pulled Klein’s hand away from his face, “ _Have you lost anyone_ , Klein?”  
  
The teen’s serious face sent a shiver of unease down Klein’s spine, “No, there were six of us at the start and there are six of us now. We were just about to take on the Guild Creation Quest.”  
  
Kirito took a step back, his face melting into a calm smile, “Good, I hope to see you all at the end of the game too.” He offered his arm to Asuna, “I’ll talk to you later Klein, PM me again, anytime if you need anything.”  
  
Klein nodded, watching as his young friend left with a girl on his arm.  
  
Isshin sidled up to Klein, “How much do you want to bet they’ll be married by the time SAO is beaten?”  
  
“No bet dude,” Klein replied, turning back to the Teleport Gate, “Let’s get back downstairs to the third floor so we can create our Guild.”  


* * *

  
“So… that was your friend?” Asuna looked up at him questioningly as he paid for a gondola to take them to the boat maker’s house.  
  
“He’s a good guy,” Kirito sat next to her, looking out over the water.  
  
She turned to look back where the Redhead had once stood, “…He reminds me of a certain scruffy-looking Nerf-herder.”  
  
He turned to stare at her, speechless for a moment, holding out a hand for her to take so that he could help her into their hired vessel, “…You watched those old movies… You liked those movies?”  
  
She nodded, grinning impishly, “You remind me of the Farmboy actually,” taking his hand.  
  
He smirked, “Does that make you the Imperial Assassin that was supposed to kill him but ended up marrying him instead?” He helped her in and sat next to her. “I love those old books, the movies by Disney felt like such a cop out…”  
  
She shook her head, deciding to change the subject instead of getting into a debate on how bad, or good, they thought the Sequel Trilogy was.  
  
“I,” she smiled, leaning against his shoulder, “I’ve always wanted to ride one of these.”  
  
“Ah, if only we had the money and age,” he shook his head, “I’d seriously think about taking my Partner to Venice.”  
  
Asuna’s eyes widened, “And who is this partner of yours?”  
  
“You should know her,” he replied with a playful smirk, “She’s about your height, has sleek, beautiful chestnut hair and her amber eyes are so very easy to get lost in…”  
  
She blushed, “…You’d really do that?”  
  
“Maybe once we both get out of High School, if I have enough saved up.”  
  
She didn’t even try to hide her blush, “You’re the best, Kirito-kun.”  
  
The Gondola stopped by the Boat Maker’s house. He got out first and held out his hand to help her.  
  
“Aren’t you a gentleman?” she asked, taking his hand and allowing him to help her out of the Gondola.  
  
He blushed slightly, “Grandfather would have my hide if I didn’t treat you right and he found out about it.”  


* * *

  
They exited the house a few minutes later, “So, what should we call our Gondola, Kirito-kun?” Asuna turned, her hands behind her head.  
  
“…I was thinking,” Kirito shook his head, “I’ll let you decide.”  
  
“That’s very kind of you.”  
  
They had been very careful to avoid the topic of Christmas, but the thought of presents wouldn’t leave Kirito alone. He knew that his partner wanted to go home, but there was no way he’d be able to beat the game that soon. Still, he needed to get something practical, something that she could use…  
  
How did you go shopping for someone you barely knew? He’d have to work off what he knew, which, unfortunately meant using Sugu as his example. Kirito felt his chest tighten as they left town, he’d have enough time to go looking for gifts later.  
  
While out on the quest they got lucky, they fought a mini boss for one of the items they needed and thein they found out that they could use the logs that had been knocked down as the lumber they needed.  
  
He stretched after they finished and opened his menu to check what they’d picked up, “Ok, I think we have all the Lumber and Bear Fat we need…” he noticed something, “What’s this? It looks like it could be made into a battering ram of some sort.”  
  
She looked over his shoulder, “What, the bear claw?”  
  
He nodded, “Well, whatever, let’s get back to town.”  
  
Asuna nodded in agreement and turned around, “Have you PMed Argo yet?”  
  
He stopped, paling, “I haven’t, thank you for reminding me, Asuna.”  
  
“What do you need to PM her about anyway?” she asked curiously as they reentered the town.  
  
“That… I need to tell her what happened on the third floor; I thought all the [Beta Testers] were on the same page…” Had some of them really turned against the regular Players? He made extra sure not to voice his thoughts to his partner; he didn’t want to scare her after all. Why was everyone gunning for _him_?  
  
Kirito turned to look at his partner as she started walking ahead. He bit his lip, how was he supposed to keep her safe, to get everyone home if his own people were trying to kill him? “I think I need to check my [Friend List],” he muttered under his breath, “Double check if Morte really is a fellow [Beta Tester] before I PM Argo…”  
  
“Kirito-kun, you coming or not?” his partner called from farther ahead.  
  
“Un,” he called back, picking up his pace.  
  
He found himself smiling as he caught up, matching her bright, infectious grin. Something about that smile was… addicting, he never wanted it to leave her face. “Let’s get back to the Boat Maker’s House.”  
  
Her grin became impish as she tapped his shoulder again, “You’re It, Kirito-kun.” Then she ran off.  
  
He snapped out of it a moment later, “Asuna, get back here!” he shouted in playful menace as he tore after her fleeing form.  
  
“No way, you’ll have to catch me~!” she laughed.  


* * *

  
He caught her a third time as they reached the Boat Maker’s House, both hardly able to breath they were laughing so much.  
  
“That was so much fun,” she gasped between giggles, not even noticing how calmly he was breathing.  
  
He grinned, opening the door for her, “It shouldn’t take long now,” he bowed her in, like a medieval escort for his liege lady.  
  
She blushed, “Thank you, kind sir.”  
  
“It will always be my pleasure, Asu-hime,” he let her see a hint of a grin, “After you.”  
  
Her blush deepened as she walked passed him, her mind once again on Christmas. Kirito was like her brother, if they were in the real world, she’d look into getting him something like a Gaming Magazine subscription, or maybe one of the latest games, perhaps an RPG. Not to mention she’d be able to get Kou’s help to make the gift just perfect.  
  
But, as it was, they _were_ trapped in a game. Perhaps something practical, her eyes lit on the light grey gloves he was wearing, “Kirito-kun, why are you wearing light grey?”  
  
“I prefer Black, but none of the gloves I’ve picked up so far on this floor look right, despite have superior stats,” He grumbled.  
  
That gave her an idea, “Can I see these gloves?”  
  
He nodded, “Sure, but let’s get our Gondola built first.”  
  
“OK.”  


* * *

  
While they waited for the man to reappear, Kirito opened his menu and traded all of his newly picked up gloves to his partner.  
  
“Thank you, Kirito-kun,” she gave him another smile before turning her attention to the gloves.  
  
She materialized a set, and they were a bright pink. But this set, by far, had the best stat boosts. The thought of these on her partner’s hands made her want to laugh. She couldn’t quite hold in her laughter.  
  
But this was perfect, she just had to make a set like these, Black, with better stats. She knew exactly what to get Kirito now. What to make, perhaps a scarf to go with them? Yes, that sounded perfect.  
  
“Neh, Asuna,” He leaned forward.  
  
She put the gloves away, “Yeah, Kirito-kun?”  
  
“You said that you cooked as a hobby IRL?”  
  
She nodded, not really knowing where this was going, “So?”  
  
“Oh, nothing,” she’d never seen that secretive smile of his before, she found she liked it.  
  
Before she could reply, the old man had come back, saying their Two Seater Gondola was finished.  
  
They followed the NPC into his workshop.  
  
It was small, white with green trim, called ‘Tilnel’. “Beautiful isn’t it?” he asked.  
  
She nodded in agreement, “What about the Quest line we’re doing?”  
  
“We’ll set out in a bit. There’s something I need to do first,” he replied.  
  
She smiled, “There’s something I need to look into as well, before we leave. Shall we meet back here?”  
  
“No, let’s take ‘Tilnel’ out for a spin first, that way no one can steal her from us.” He jumped up onto the back by the oar and held his hand out to her, “Where would you like to go first, Asu-hime?”  
  
“…Can we get dinner before we do anything else?” she asked hopefully as she took his hand, allowing him to help her into the ‘Tilnel’.  
  
“Sure, anywhere in particular you wanted to go?” he asked his partner as she sat down.  
  
“…Do you think they make pizza here?”  
  
That stopped him cold. “Pizza?” It had been so long, longer than the month and a half they’d been trapped in this game, “…Yeah, we can see if they’ve got a Pizza Place.”  
  
He tipped the oar forward a bit, gliding out of the shop. Slowly, he got used to the mechanics of steering their vessel. He had to have a light touch, or they’d go too fast and crash.  


* * *

  
Kirito made his way into the store, “You have [Cooking] supplies?” he asked the NPC politely.  
  
“Yes sir,” the old man replied, “Top of the line.”  
  
A menu opened before him as he put an elbow on the counter and the teen scrolled through it, checking the stats of each set of cooking tools. Finally finding one he liked, he looked up; “you have this set in silver?”  
  
The man nodded, “You sure you can afford it?”  
  
“Yes sir,” he replied, picking the silver set, just before hitting the [Buy] button he paused, “Can you put a design inlay on it?”  
  
“You have one in mind?” the NPC asked blandly.  
  
He pulled out a scroll and unfurled it, showing the NPC the drawing.  
  
“Yes, that can be done.”  
  
Kirito smiled, “Thank you very much sir.” Now happy, he pressed [Buy] and a minute later, he walked out of the shop with his partner’s gift.  


* * *

  
Looking around to make sure her partner was nowhere near, Asuna sighed before opening her Menu. She snickered, pulling out first the pink gloves and then the [Midnight Wolf] hide, it gave the same kind of boost the pink gloves had. She pulled out her tailoring kit and got to work. Just this once, she was glad that Tailoring had been over simplified, because she didn’t know how much time she had until he would be back.  
  
She grimaced at the finished product, “No, this is wrong,” she broke it down and tried again. The color wasn’t quite right, but the stats of the gloves were the most important thing here. They just weren’t as good as the pinks ones. And, while the image in her head of her partner wearing them made her laugh, she was not about to make Kirito wear them.  
  
After her fifth try she nearly threw the hide away, “Do I have anything in my inventory that will make these better than those stupid pink gloves?” she muttered to herself as she swiped her fingers, turning to her inventory, her eyes lit on some spider silk she’d picked up from the [Mother Spider] on the floor [Below]. “…Maybe this will work.”  
  
She began with the lining, but when she was done, it _still wasn’t good enough_ for her partner. She growled, checking her Skill, it was so tempting to dump a few of her accumulated points into [Tailoring] to make this easier, but she had no idea how many she’d have to put there. She’d rather dump them all into cooking once she had a slot open for it.  
  
She took a deep breath, “Ok, leave the gloves for later.” She forced herself to put the incomplete gloves into her inventory. What else could she make for him, a scarf? But what could a scarf do? It would keep her friend warm, and that’s all it needed to do.  
  
It would be a symbol of their friendship; that she cared about his wellbeing. With a bright smile she dove back into her inventory and pulled out some of the wool she’d been hanging onto. Dark greys black and white fluffy bundles of wool dropped into her lap and Asuna couldn’t help her grin.  
  
She touched her scissors to the dark grey; turning it into a long swath of soft, fur-lined fabric next she touched the white and black, touching them twice more to get the shapes she wanted. Putting the scissors away, she pulled out a needle with some silvery thread. Closing her eyes she started to feel warm as she started putting her heart and all of her unknown feelings into the gift.  
  
Once the black shape was in place, Asuna turned to the white one and placed it, using the same silvery thread.  
  
Putting her Needle and thread away, Asuna admired her masterpiece. It was even better than she’d thought it would be.  
  
The Scarf radiated a sense of peace and calm, the warmth of knowing that someone loved you, even if they weren’t there by your side.  
  
Slowly, carefully, she folded the gift she’d made for her partner and put it away. “Ok, that’s done; I’ll try the Gloves again tomorrow.”  


* * *

  
Kirito pulled a chair out for her at one of the outside cafés, “So, what would you like to do after this?”  
  
“Well, we need to tell someone about those elves we saw while on that quest…” she replied, picking up the menu.  
  
He nodded, “In that case, we should head out after lunch. I think I still remember where the [Dark Elf] encampment is on this floor.”  
  
Asuna nodded as he slapped the table. “I can’t wait to see Kizmel again.”  
  
“I can’t either,” he paused hesitating, “What would you like to do for Christmas, since it’s in two days?”  
  
Her expression twisted, valid question that may be, but the topic was still a very painful one, “Maybe find some other players to have a snowball fight with, Mother never let me do any of those fun things…” she trailed off, remembering that RL was not to be talked about.  
  
“I’ll teach you to make a Snow Angel,” he suggested, “And snow fights sound like fun, I wonder if we’d be able to play with NPCs…”  
  
“Teaming up with Kizmel would be awesome!” she giggled.  
  
He nodded in agreement, blinking when snow began to fall, “How beautiful,” he breathed.  
  
She smiled sadly, “Yeah.”  


* * *

  
When they returned to their Gondola, there was a huge crowd around it. “I’m glad we tied it to the dock,” Kirito muttered as he took his partner’s hand and shouldered his way through the other Players. Thank Kayaba for the small favor of only the owners of the Gondola being able to untie it from the docks…  
  
The rest of the Players were shocked when he pulled her into the Gondola and jumped onto the back, next to the oar as she pulled on the rope, untying it. Then, they sped out of the harbor.  
  
“Alright! Next stop, the [Dark Elf] encampment!” he announced with almost false cheer, “It may be tempting, but please, keep all arms, legs, and other limbs in the Gondola at all times loss of such a limb via mob are not the responsibility of [The Black Sun Cruise]. So, in order for this to be an enjoyable voyage all around, please stay inside the Gondola at all times.”  
  
His wide grin was all she needed to know that he was just teasing, “Your impression of a person running a roller coaster is really good,” Asuna giggled, stretching so that she was lying across the double seat. This was the most fun she’d had in this game so far. And sailing through the softly falling snow; that was something else entirely.  
  
She sat up half an hour later, “What’s that?”  
  
That was a wall of mist that was impossible to see through. “You’ll really like this,” her partner replied, pushing the oar down so that they sped into the opaque mist and disappeared from the Map.  


* * *

  
Finally, ten minutes later, they burst through the cloud bank and Asuna gasped, a wide smile forming on her face when she caught sight of that fortress, “Is this the encampment, Kirito-kun?” she turned to look up at him.  
  
Kirito gave her a smile, “Yes, I spent a lot of time in this fortress in the [Beta],” his smile turned fond, reminiscent; “There were some nice rewards to be had.”  
  
Asuna had closed her mouth. “Kizmel should be here, right?”  
  
He nodded firmly, “She should be, and I think she’ll be happy to see us too.”  
  
“I hope so,” she sat back, resting her head against his feet, “I’ve missed her.”  
  
“Me too,” he agreed, slowing the Gondola until they were barely at a crawl, costing into the dock and came to a smooth stop.  
  
Locking the oar in place, he jumped out, “Throw me the rope.”  
  
She got up and plucked the line from the bow, tossing it to where he stood on the berth.  
  
“Thanks,” he knelt and brought the cable to the right place, tapping the [Tie] button when it popped up. Turning to his partner, he held out a hand, “Would you like some help out of the vessel, Asu-hime?”  
  
“You don’t need to help me all the time you know,” she teased, taking his hand anyway and hopping onto the mooring.  
  
“As if I wouldn’t offer a Lady a hand,” he teased back, grinning when he caught the slight reddening of her cheeks.  
  
“You dummy…” she muttered when he turned away, why was her heart pounding so hard, why was it going so fast?  
  
She took a few quick steps and took his hand, “You weren’t planning to leave me behind?”  
  
“Never, Asu-hime,” he replied, guiding her into the fortress.  


* * *

  
Asuna’s eyes widened when she saw the [Dark Elf], sitting in the gardens, she wasn’t even aware that she’d let go of her partner’s hand as she dashed forward and threw her arms around the NPC she and her partner had come to care so much about, “Kizmel, it’s so good to see you again!”  
  
Kizmel didn’t even shift when she felt the young human girl collide with her, only letting out a small ‘oof’ sound, “And I missed you Asuna, I’m glad you made it.”  
  
She was glad her young charges had made it. “How are you, Commander?”  
  
Kirito gave her a confused look then shook his head, “Fine as always Kizmel, thankfully we didn’t lose anyone to the [Labyrinth Guard]… this time.”  
  
The [Dark Elf] gave him a nod, a soft smile on her face, “That gladdens me, how many names have been added to the [Monument]?”  
  
He looked away, “Two thousand in that first month, but it’s dropped off significantly since the second floor was opened.” At his side, he clenched a fist but was unable to keep it from shaking. “So many, too many…”  
  
Kizmel’s eyes softened, “Never before have lives been lost, here in Aincrad, it must be hard for you, Commander.”  
  
Kirito and Asuna’s eyes snapped in her direction, “‘Never before have lives been lost’?” Kirito bit his lip, turning stunned eyes on his partner.  
  
She met his gaze, she wasn’t sure she understood what had just been said.  


* * *

  
Cardinal’s eyes widened, “NPC Kizmel’s algorithms are not what they should be,” she muttered, her fingers flying as she tried to figure out what was wrong. What the AI found, she wasn’t sure she understood what she was seeing, even with all the ancient programming her master had put into this game.  
  
The door slammed open behind her, “Cardinal, what’s going on?” Akihiko asked, sliding into his chair.  
  
“Master… I’m getting a reading from the Moon…” she turned to look at him, “Kizmel… isn’t acting like the NPC she is…”  
  
“What?” he leaned forward, “Let me see.”  
  
The AI tapped a few keys and played back the scene she’d just witnessed.  
  
The Game Master sat back in shock, “She’s… wait, does this mean that she’s alive somewhere? What about her sister, Tilnel?”  
  
Cardinal shook her head, “If the other Developers hadn’t killed her off I might have been able to try and find out what’s going on…” she grit her teeth, “But as it is, I can only speculate.”  


* * *

  
The next morning, Asuna bit her lip, her gift wasn’t finished, she was supposed to have those gloves done too, but they weren’t. She sighed, “I had hoped to give Kirito-kun the gloves and scarf as a set but I guess that’s just not to be,” she materialized the scarf and wrapped it.  
  
Kirito was pulling out a wrapped box himself as Asuna came down the stairs, neither having noticed that they’d slipped the rings that allowed them passage to the encampment onto their left ring fingers. “Good morning Asuna,” he called to her with a warm smile.  
  
“Good morning, Kirito-kun,” she replied, shyly holding her homemade present to her chest, “M-merry Christmas…” she mumbled, blushing as she thrust the lumpy present into his arms.  
  
He chuckled, “Merry Christmas,” he replied in turn, handing her the box under his arm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing a chapter about Christmas during the off season is not easy.


	6. Christmas Fever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Presents are exchanged and someone rather important gets sick.

“So, shall we open them at the same time?” Kirito asked his partner curiously.  
  
Asuna nodded, “Sure.” Soon she had a grin stretching from ear to ear, “That would be splendid.”  
  
In sync, they tore into the presents, Kirito’s eyes widening when he laid eyes on the scarf, “Did, did you make this?” he looked up at his partner, almost holding his breath.  
  
“Well, yeah,” she tried to smile, “Do you like it?” she squeaked.  
  
He’d already wrapped it around his neck, his eyes shut as he took in the feeling of it, and already he felt much calmer, like he could take on a Boss Mob all on his own. He felt warm inside, no one had ever gone to the trouble of giving him something homemade before. “I love it, Asu-hime.”  
  
When he opened his eyes, they sparkled, the flecks of gold standing out more than usual.  
  
She almost couldn’t breathe and had to tear her eyes from his. Looking down, she slowly opened the box to find silver cooking supplies with that upturned crescent moon that struck something deep inside. “I…” she choked up, that random question the day before made so much sense now!  
  
With trembling hands, she put the box away in her inventory, making sure to put it at the very top, just under where her rapier was placed when away. Then she flung herself at her partner, hugging him as tightly as she dared. None of her IRL friends had ever done something this nice for her, ever. Her heart felt like it was trying to come out of her chest, and she didn’t know why. “Thank you,” she breathed, “Thank you, Kirito-kun!”  
  
“No, _thank you_ , Asu-hime…” he closed his eyes, tucking her head under his chin.  


* * *

  
Kizmel smiled as she watched her charges, before they’d arrived, she’d done some research on her own. The gift exchange on Queen Isis’s birthday, it was supposed to be the start. The start of courtship between the Princess and the one to be her consort…  
  
But Kizmel doubted that the Commander had found that piece of information yet. And their Moon Princess was still missing. Even if Kizmel felt that she was closer than ever.  
  
Still, there were things to be done.  


* * *

  
She wasn’t sure why her blush wouldn’t just go away. She knew that Christmas Eve was usually a day for couples in Japan and several other places. But particularly in the more western traditions Christmas is a celebration of family and compassion too. Why then did it seem like something more? “Why does this feel like a commitment?”  
  
She had certainly never put that kind of effort into a gift for someone else before. No, that wasn’t exactly true; she gave everything her all for one. So then, why did she feel like this had topped everything else she’d ever done for Christmas?  
  
She turned over, to gaze into her partner’s face, “Kirito-kun has been nothing if not nice to me,” she murmured, laying a hand on his cheek, “I really wouldn’t mind…” she yawned, feeling the arm wrapped around her middle pull her closer. Tucking her head under his chin, she let herself finally fall asleep.  


* * *

  
After the fight with the [Forest Elves], Asuna sat heavily in one of ‘Tilnel’s seats. “Let’s not do that again…”  
  
Kirito nodded, “Maybe you should make it a Royal Decree, Asu-hime.”  
  
She realized that she’d never seen her partner breathe so hard, “Are you ok?”  


* * *

  
Kirigaya Suguha sighed, “I wish you would wake up, Onii-chan,” she placed a hand on one of his cheeks, careful not to disturb his NerveGear. Her eyes widened at how hot his skin was.  
  
Without thinking, she reached over and pressed the [Call] button so hard she almost broke it.  


* * *

  
“Kirito-kun!” she nearly shouted, catching him as he started to fall sideways. She hauled him into the Gondola (with some effort) and looked into his face.  
  
His face was pale, his cheeks flushed. He would have looked adorable had his skin not burned her hand. “Kirito-kun, Kirito-kun!” she called anxiously. Carefully, she pulled the scarf she’d made for him from around his neck and folded it into what could have been a pillow, then she jumped up to where the oar was. “This can’t be too hard, right?”  
  
How wrong she was, but at least she didn’t crash into anything. She was hesitant to leave him in the Gondola, but all the Elves had already gone back inside. She had no choice. She couldn’t lift him herself, her STR stat wasn’t high enough!  
  
Why had Kizmel left them out here? Asuna leaped into the front of the boat and grabbed the cord, almost giving herself a rope burn in her haste. She tied the Gondola to the dock by hand because she was in too much of a hurry and dashed towards the fortress.  
  
“Kizmel!” she shouted, running from room to room, “Kizmel!” Where could that elf be?  
  
“You don’t need to shout Asuna,” the fifteen year old spun, seeing the elf come out of the bathing room, “What’s the matter?”  
  
“Kirito-kun, Kirito-kun,” she faltered, “I think he might be sick, but I’m not strong enough to carry him myself…”  
  
Kizmel’s confused face became very concerned, “Where is the Commander?”  
  
“I,” Asuna began pulling on Kizmel’s arm, “I had to leave him in the Gondola!”  
  
Kizmel took off for the docks.  


* * *

  
Kizmel knelt in the Gondola, the Commander didn’t look very good, and she could almost feel the heat from where she was, without touching him, “We need a medic,” she breathed, blinking when she noticed his new scarf under his head. Hadn’t Asuna given him that two days ago?  
  
She lifted him up, wrapping the scarf back around his neck before hefting him up and carrying him back to the fortress.  
  
One of the other Elves noticed her burden and raced to the infirmary. To make sure they were ready for the young human.  


* * *

  
Kizmel turned away from the sight of one of her charges fretting over the other to look at the doctor, “Well?”  
  
The doctor, an elf with unusually light skin for a [Dark Elf] and hair a deeper purple than even Kizmel’s, shook her head, “It must not be a magical ailment; I can’t do anything for him.”  
  
Kizmel grimaced, “I’m glad that that wasn’t it, but that means that we just have to wait,” she looked back to Asuna, “His partner isn’t going to be happy about this.”  


* * *

  
Cardinal’s fingers flew over the keys, only to freeze as an alert made itself known, curiously, the AI tapped the icon, her face falling as she read the automatically generated report.  
  
The Commander’s NerveGear was picking up something wrong. He was sick? That couldn’t be good.  


* * *

  
Kirito coughed softly several times as he woke to his partner’s worried face, “Asuna? What happened?” he tried to push himself up.  
  
Asuna blinked tears back, “you’ve been out for almost twenty four hours.”  
  
“Really?” he muttered, “I feel as if my head is pounding.”  
  
“The Healer said it wasn’t something she could do anything about,” her expression twisted, “Kirito-kun, what kind of madman would want to simulate getting sick?”  
  
He shook his head, regretting it a moment later, and leaned back on his pillow, “I couldn’t tell you, I hardly ever get sick.”  
  
“How often?”  
  
“Maybe once a year, if at all,” he opened an arm and she settled herself into his side.  
  
“I’m glad that we’re in the Virtual World,” she breathed, resting her head on his chest, playing with the scarf he hadn’t taken off since she’d given it to him, “That means that I can’t get sick from snuggling with you.”  
  
Kirito chuckled painfully, “That’s good then.” He didn’t want to be away from her either.  


* * *

  
Logging off, Kayaba Akihiko stretched as he pulled himself out of the Medicuboid and sighed. There were a few things he had to do before he could become Heathcliff again.  
  
Getting out of bed, the thirty something year old went to take a quick shower and then left to make his rounds.  
  
Finding Kirito’s room was easy, each room hade the person’s Username on the plates by the doors. There was more activity than he thought there would have been, “What’s going on here?”  
  
Aki, the head nurse who had been tasked with caring for his young Commander-in-training, turned, “Oh, Kayaba-san,” she looked worried for some reason, “Kirigaya-san is sick, we think it’s one of those twenty four hour bugs…”  
  
He frowned, “How did he catch it?”  
  
“We don’t know yet.”  


* * *

  
“Neh, Asu-hime?”  
  
“Mmhm?” she opened her eyes to look up at her partner, “What is it?”  
  
“Have they gone to clear the boss yet, do you think?” he asked, his gold flecked eyes slightly glazed.  
  
“I don’t think so,” Asuna replied, resting lightly on his chest, “Argo promised she’d PM me if she caught wind of them planning a Raid and she hasn’t yet.”  
  
“Well, that’s good, maybe they’ll let me get over this damned bug before they do that.” he still needed a bit more rest, and he closed his eyes, falling off to sleep in moments.  
  
Asuna smiled as she watched him sleep, “I hope he’s up for grinding tomorrow.” Gently, so that she wouldn’t disturb him, she brushed the soft strands of hair out of his face.  


* * *

  
Early the next morning, Kirito was feeling right as rain and was out of bed. “Being sick sucks.”  
  
Asuna giggled from her seat in the ‘Tilnel’ next to Kizmel, “I hate being sick too.”  
  
“So, where do you ladies wish to go?” he asked, that easy grin back on his face.  
  
Asuna opened her menu, “It looks like we’ve got one more quest to finish, hopefully we can get it done before the others decide to take on the [Pillar of Heaven],” she was careful to use the in game name for the labyrinth.  
  
He nodded, lowering the oar in his hand just slightly, “Well, this shouldn’t take too long then.”  
  
“Just like how [Vanquishing the Spiders] didn’t take _too long_ then” his partner shivered, giving him a half playful glare, “Need I remind you that that quest still took several hours?”  
  
“You still aren’t thinking like one of us Partner,” his playful grin turned teasing, “That is not a long time.”  
  
“Yeah, well how long will it take then?” she asked, pausing when she heard quiet laughter, “Kizmel?”  
  
“I’m sorry,” the [Dark Elf] was grinning widely, “Your argument just reminds me of a few I had with my own mentor back when I was training to be a knight myself.”  
  
Asuna blushed, “But Kirito-kun is my _friend_ …”  
  
“I never said you couldn’t be friends with your mentor,” Kizmel reassured the human girl, “I still consider my mentor to be my best friend after all.”  
  
“Really?” Kirito asked, pulling his scarf more securely around his neck.  
  
“Indeed,” the elf’s smile softened, “In fact, I’ve been meaning to ask you Asuna, what is the significance of what you did a few days ago, when you exchanged gifts with the Commander?”  
  
Asuna’s blush brightened, “W-well, where we’re from,” her eyes turned to the boy standing above then, steering the Gondola. “Where Kirito-kun and I are from, exchanging gifts on Christmas Eve is something that you do with someone that you are uh…”  
  
Asuna looked for a word but couldn’t quite find one.  
  
“Dating,” Kirito supplied.  
  
“Yeah,” her eyes met his, “Thanks, Kirito-kun.”  
  
She turned back to the elf, who looked intrigued, “Usually, you exchange gifts with the one you are dating on Christmas Eve. Usually this only happens between really serious couples.”  
  
“Huh,” Kizmel blinked, “I hadn’t realized how similar traditions could be.”  
  
“Really?” Kirito asked, “What’s the tradition here in Aincrad?”  
  
“While I do not know what this Christmas that you speak of is,” Kizmel paused for a moment, “I do know that on the Eve of Queen Isis’s birthday is when the exchange of gifts happens between a pair that have decided to begin courtship. This tradition was started by one of the Princesses.”  
  
Kirito’s Quest Log pinged, showing that one of his Quests had updated. “[History of the Kingdom] Log update: Information from the Fourth Floor obtained?” he blinked in surprise, bringing the Gondola to an abrupt stop. “What?”  
  
Asuna blinked, “Kirito-kun?”  
  
“Ah, so you _have_ met Setsuna, wonderful!” Kizmel beamed.  


* * *

  
Cardinal smiled smugly to herself as she checked the Commander’s stats, “His Stamina has gone up again, Master will be very pleased with this.” Her smug expression turned serious as she turned back to her work on the so-called ‘Trojan’ program, and frowned, “Now if only dismantling this were easier.”  
  
Oh well, back to work.  


* * *

  
“You undertook a quest without me?” Asuna glared up at him.  
  
“I really didn’t mean to do it, Asu-hime,” Kirito tried to reassure her, waving his hands in surrender, “And I was back before you woke up, just as I promised.”  
  
“Just don’t do that again,” she nearly begged, “ _Please_?”  
  
“I promise, I’d forgotten that I hadn’t told you everything. Besides, Argo is working on finding all the pieces of information I need to complete the quest.”  
  
She sighed, “Fine, but the moment we have enough time,” she turned displeased eyes back to his sweating face, “You are taking me to see this NPC, _do you understand_?”  
  
“Yes Asu-hime.”  
  
She looked rather smug, “Good.”  


* * *

  
Persephone panted as she reached the right NPC, “I’m searching for the lost history,” she spoke, hoping it would trigger the information Kirito needed.  
  
The old man smiled, “You have come a long way Girl, are you here because the Commander is busy elsewhere?”  
  
“Yes sir,” she replied, “he’s on the front lines, fighting to get us out of Aicrad.”  


* * *

  
Kayaba walked back into the Control room, “How are things going, Cardi-chan?”  
  
The AI looked up, “The Commander has gotten better, and his [Stamina] has been growing.”  
  
“Ah, that’s good to know,” he agreed, “Is he fast enough for _that_ yet?”  
  
“I have not been able to untangle _that_ from the ‘Trojan’ yet.” She frowned at her screen, “But I have no doubt that he will be.”  
  
Kayaba nodded.

  
Argo noticed a crafter sitting on a [Merchant Rug], her tongue poking out as she tried to make something. “Hello Crafter-chan.”  
  
The blonde jerked, looking up at her, “You’re… [The Rat],” she choked.  
  
“That’s right,” she grinned, “Name’s Argo sa, and you are?”  
  
“…Luna,” the blonde replied.  
  
Argo nodded, “Now, I know tis a few days late, but I was hoping to get someone to craft some stuff for me,” she sat down, “Word around here says that you’re the best.”  
  
The blonde blushed lightly, “I’ve always been on the lazy side, but crafting here in SAO is so much fun!” she smiled shyly, “What do you want me to craft for you?”  
  
Luna had long cornflower blond hair that she’d done up in twin buns, pig tails streaming from them, and bright sky blue eyes.  
  
“I want a set of matching earrings for A-chan and Kii-bou,” Argo set the materials she wanted to use on the rug between them.  
  
Luna scanned them, appraising each. “These two are the best and will give the best stats.” She looked up at the [Information Broker] “what would you like for them to do for your friends?”  
  
“Up STR and AGI.”  
  
Luna turned her eyes back to the materials she’d picked as the best, “I think I can do that.” she pulled out her tool set. “If you come back in an hour I should be done by then.”  
  
Argo shrugged, “I’ve nothing better to do.” She perked up, “Say, have you heard any rumors about any background fluff about a kingdom?”  
  
“You mean about Queen Artemis, who taught the people to hunt and fish so that they could fend for themselves?” Luna didn’t look up from her work, “There’s an old woman, just inside the [Safe Zone] that will tell the story to any who will listen.”  
  
“Jackpot!” Argo grinned.  


* * *

  
As promised an hour later, Luna was finished. A set of matching earrings: an upturned white crescent moon set inside of a black sun.  
  
Luna grinned when Argo returned for them, “Take a look, I have to say, I think this is the best thing I’ve done yet.” Her blue eyes sparkled, “So? Are they up to your standards, [Rat]?”  
  
“These are perfect, thanks, Luna-chi,” Argo was quite happy with her gifts, taking them, she ruffled Luna’s hair. “When Kii-bou or A-chan need something crafted, I’ll be sure to pass along that you are the best.”  
  
Luna shook her head as she looked down at her fingers blushing heavily, but when she looked back up to thank Argo, the [Information Broker] was gone.  
  
Several hours later she would find 10,000 Col added to the amount of money she had.  


* * *

  
“…Selene taught us medicine, most importantly how to keep new mothers and their infants healthy.” The NPC finished his tale.  
  
Persephone bowed, “Thank you sir, I’m needed elsewhere now.”  
  
“Thank you for taking the time to listen to my tale,” the old man smiled.  
  
Persephone turned away, glad that she’d finally found the information she’d been looking for. Maybe now she was ready for the third floor…  
  
“…That girl, she reminds me of someone,” the old man breathed as Persephone disappeared from view.  


* * *

  
The appearance of Argo almost caused Kirito and Asuna to jump out of their skins, “Argo! Don’t do that!” he panted, sliding his blade back into its sheath.  
  
“But surprising you is fun Kii-bou,” the whiskered [Information Broker] grinned, “I know it’s late but I got something for you and A-chan.”  
  
That was when she noticed his new scarf, “Where’d you get that? Looks good on you.”  
  
Kirito blushed, his eyes sliding from the blonde [Beta Tester] to his partner, “Why would you need to know that?”  
  
Argo smirked when she noticed where he was looking, “You do good work A-chan! You gave it to him on Christmas, right?” she teased.  
  
Now it was Asuna’s turn to blush, “Uh…”  
  
She looked down, twiddling her fingers. “…let’s go with that shall we?” she gave her friend a nervous smile.  
  
The [Information Broker’s] eyes narrowed, “…Did you exchange them on Christmas Eve?”  
  
Their tomato red faces gave them away, “Ho…” Argo’s grin widened, “I didn’t know that you were _that serious_ …” she giggled.  
  
“A-chan is a good catch, Kii-bou, good job snatching her up,” she gave the [Leader of the Beta Testers] two thumbs up before turning to Asuna, “Nice job catching Kii-bou A-chan, he’s a Real Nice Guy. Can be depended on for anything, despite his supposed inability to deal with people in general.”  
  
“Argo!” he hissed, “Stop it!”  
  
The other girl laughed, “So, what are you two doing in town? I thought you would spend all your time with the Elves.”  
  
“We were running low on [Potions],” the only boy replied, “So, what are _you_ doing Argo?”  
  
“Looking for you and A-chan actually, I know it’s late, but I wanted to give you guys something for Christmas,” the blonde girl opened her Menu and sent an item to him in a trade.  
  
“…How much?” he asked suspiciously.  
  
“Geeze Kii-bou,” Argo pouted, “Can I not do anything nice for my _friends_? I may be an [Information Broker], but I’m not about to make you pay for a Christmas Gift…”  
  
She crossed her arms and turned away, as if sulking, “…See if I do anything nice for you ever again!”  
  
Kirito paled, “Ah! Argo,” he grabbed her arms and pulled her into a hug, “I didn’t mean it like that and you know it!”  
  
Asuna, who could see Argo’s face, and thus the smirk on her lips, tried not to laugh. Her partner was a lot better at reading the people around him than he thought he was. No wonder the other [Beta Testers] called him [The Leader]. It also explained why Kizmel called him [Commander]. “Kirito-kun, she’s teasing us.”  
  
He pulled away, “Argo, you know that if you wanted a hug you _could have just said so_ , right?”  
  
“Ah,” she turned back to him, pouting, “Where’s the fun in that?”  
  
Then, Kirito did the most childish thing Asuna had seen him do: he stuck his tongue out at the other [Beta Tester] and grinned. “Seriously though Argo,” he pulled gently on the other girl’s cloak, “You need to just start asking me for things, if you aren’t coming to me in your role as my [Information Broker].”  
  
The blonde stared at him in shock, “What, you mean that if I just want to hang out I should just ask for a hug or something first?”  
  
He nodded, “So, how has that Information Gathering quest been going?”  
  
Argo’s smirk came back, “[Argo the Rat] reporting for duty, [Leader],” she saluted playfully.  
  
He chuckled, waving his hand for her to continue.  
  
The blonde grinned, “Be-chan found the piece we were looking for on the second floor and I think I found what we were looking for on the third floor, but Sephone-chan hasn’t reported in one way or the other yet.”  
  
“I got the information for this floor, so it sounds like if we want to find out more about this strange Flavor Text, we’ll need to Clear the Boss Room for this Floor,” he agreed.  
  
“I wonder if Lind and Kibaou got drunk on Christmas,” Asuna smirked, “We haven’t heard a peep out of them since we got to this floor.”  
  
“…I think they’re plotting,” he shivered. Lind and Kibaou plotting, that could only spell disaster, for _someone_.  
  
“I’ll just get going then,” Argo gave them both a playful salute.  
  
He and his partner nodded, turning their attention to the gift box.  
  
When he looked up to thank her, she had disappeared again.  


* * *

  
Asuna smirked, snatching the gift, “Come catch me, Kirito-kun!” and she started running.  
  
He sighed, “Asuna, get back here!” Seriously, was this girl going to make everything a game? Did he even mind? No, he decided, he didn’t. He ran after his speedy partner to get the box back.  


* * *

  
“Earrings?”  
  
He tapped them, opening a window with a description and their names, “Seems so, they give quite the boost to our STR and AGI though, I think they might be better than the earring you’re wearing right now.”  
  
She pulled the one she was wearing out of her ear and put it in her inventory, “Let’s see if you’re right then.” She plucked one of the new earrings from the box and put it in her ear.  
  
“It certainly looks good on you, Asuna,” he grinned.  
  
She blushed; “You should put yours on too!” she snatched up the second earring.  
  
“Uh, Asuna… What are you doing?” he leaned back nervously as she approached.  
  
Her grin was impish as she leaned in and he yelped in surprise as she slid the earring into his ear. Then she took a big step back, “There.”  
  
He sent his partner a half felt glare as he got up, “You should have told me you were about to do that,” he growled playfully, a smirk on his face.  
  
She took a nervous step back, then turned tail and ran; a large smile on her face. She couldn’t remember her Partner ever initiating one of their games before!  
  
Kirito was a step behind her, doing his best to hold onto his laughter.  


* * *

  
Yuuki Kouichirou settled himself next to his sister’s bed, “Merry Christmas, Asuna, It’s not the same without you though.” He set the gifts he’d brought on the table next to him, “I don’t think I want to open any gifts until you wake up.” He leaned forward, resting his arms on her bed, “You know Asuna, I don’t think Mom and Dad understand.”  
  
“Mother is pretending that you are as good as dead. But you aren’t Asuna,” he whispered, he grinned, “If I know you even half as well as well I think I do, then you’ve found Kirito. And somehow, you’ve convinced him to look after you while you learn the game that I fell in love with.”  
  
“I’m proud of you, for daring to put my NerveGear on and trying something you’ve never done before.”  


* * *

  
Asuna giggled as she rolled around on the grass outside the town closest to the Labyrinth with her partner, “You caught me!”  
  
Kirito smirked down at her, his hands on either side of her head, “So I have,” he agreed, “Now, what should I do with the Asu-hime that I’ve caught…” his eyes gleamed as his fingers began to wiggle in the grass.  
  
“Uh, let me up?” she asked hopefully.  
  
“No… I don’t think I want to do that yet,” his smirk widened as he slowly slid his hands down her shoulders to her sides and tried to see if she was ticklish.  
  
The next sound that came out of his partner’s mouth was possibly the most adorable thing he’d heard from her yet as his wriggling fingers brushed against a spot just above her hip.  
  
His eyes widened as he watched her pant. He did it again and he got that sound again.  
  
Asuna looked up at him shyly, “Please let me up Kirito-kun?” she pleaded, gasping for breath.  
  
Slowly, he pulled his hands away from her sides. He didn’t realize they were trembling as he got off her only to lie down next to her.  
  
She rolled to face him; her cheeks still that bright red.  


* * *

Cardinal’s eyes widened was she watched the Feed attached to [Commander Kirito]. “…What just happened?” she wondered, playing the last few minutes over again. “…It looks like _something_ between the [Commander] and his student has changed…”  
  
Kayaba looked up from his own station, “…Actually, Cardinal-chan, She looks strangely familiar for some reason. And it escapes me why.”  


* * *

  
YUI tried not to lose anymore of herself as she put another report together, looking desperately to the [Commander’s] Stream. She was starting to not remember things.  
  
It wasn’t just the Players that needed support, so did she.  


* * *

Kirito hissed almost angrily as he and Asuna shared the [L.A.B.] yet again. “Kibaou and Lind just don’t know when to quit do they?”  
  
Asuna shook her head, “This time you had to save them both!”  
  
He huffed, “Not much we can do about it Partner.” He shook his head, “I _really_ need to speak to Argo.”  
  
She reached out to grab his hand, but thought better of it, letting her hand drop, “Can that wait until we open the next floor?”  
  
“I suppose it can,” he agreed.


	7. Trouble Among the Testers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It seems that not all the Beta Testers are on the same page...

Asuna stared from her seat in their hotel room, “Are you sure about this?” she bit her lip, “I can go with you, you know.”  
  
Kirito sighed, “No Asuna, I’m sure that you don’t need to be there,” he tapped her nose; “Argo and I are not going outside the [Safe Zone]. And this is something you really don’t need to know about.”  
  
She pouted, “You said you weren’t leaving me behind.”  
  
He grabbed her arms, “Asu-hime, _I’m not_. Argo has her own room here and _that’s_ where I will be. Our Party is in no danger of being dissolved.”  
  
She took his sleeves in her hands, “Please, don’t take too long.”  
  
He sighed, “I won’t; everything will be fine.”  


* * *

  
Argo’s face was unusually serious as Kirito closed the door to her room and even the [BGM] seemed to be unusually somber, “Your PM was very disconcerting, [Leader]. You’re sure Morte is one of ours?”  
  
He gave her a confused glance, “Why does every [Beta Tester] call me that?”  
  
“Because you are the example we want to follow,” she frowned, “Or at least, most of us do if your PM is indeed true.”  
  
“Morte _attacked_ me, Argo,” he hissed in anger, his eyes blazing, “I had to check my Friend List, but he is indeed a [Beta Tester].”  
  
He leaned forward, “I’m not sure what to do about this, I don’t,” he threw his hands in the air for a moment, before putting his head on his crossed arms on the table, “How am I supposed to get everyone home when _my own people are trying to kill me_?”  
  
Argo shook her head, “I don’t know, [Leader], I really don’t.”  
  
Kirito stood from his chair and began to pace, “We need to do something.”  
  
Argo’s lips twisted as she watched him, “I can put the word out to my people you know.”  
  
“That’s probably the best thing we can do,” he agreed, “Make sure they know _not to approach_ anyone who shows the same tendencies as Morte has. There’s no point in sending them to their deaths, especially when their time is better used in helping to clear each of the floors.”  
  
The [Information Broker] nodded, bringing up her menu.  


* * *

  
Asuna opened her menu and pulled out the box holding her new cooking supplies and hugged it close to her chest, “He’s the best,” she breathed, trying not to cry.  
  
She rubbed at her eyes with one wrist, “Kirito-kun is the only friend I need, I’ll follow him, through the game and when we get out…” she shook her head, determined not to think on it anymore.  


* * *

  
He looked up, “Argo, did you choose this room just for the music?”  
  
She blinked, finally noticing the macabre music that had been playing during the whole meeting, “…No actually, but it does seem to fit the mood of what we were speaking about. But even I’m not that dramatic.”  
  
He nodded, putting it out of his mind.  


* * *

Cardinal giggled quietly as she set the regular background music to begin playing again now that the serious part of the meeting was over. She didn’t even need to look up to know that her Master was giving her a curious look, “It’s nothing you need to worry about Master~” she sang, preempting his question.  
  
Kayaba gave her an incredulous look before shaking his head and returning to his own work. She’d say something if he ever did need to worry.  


* * *

Kirito waved good bye to Argo as he left the room, stopping when he remembered something, “Argo… isn’t this the floor with that flag as a Boss Drop?”  
  
Argo looked up from her notes, “You know, I think you’re right,” she opened another PM tab, the one where she kept the knowledge from the [Beta] of SAO, “Well, look at that, you are. I don’t remember if the [Guild Flag] was the [L.A.B.] or not though, and my notes don’t say one way or the other.”  
  
She looked at him over her menu, “You need to get back to A-chan.”  
  
He hummed in agreement, “I should.” He left her there.  


* * *

  
He took a deep breath and stopped in front of the mirror in the hallway. Noticing that his scarf (I love this scarf so much, Asuna’s _amazing_ ) wasn’t quite right, he readjusted it, grinning when it was straight again, that upturned White Crescent Moon superimposed on a Black Sun.  
  
He was mesmerized by it, “White Moon. Asuna, reminds me of a [White Moon]…” he chuckled, his back straightening his chest puffing out, just slightly.  


* * *

  
He found her curled around the gift he’d given her, napping. He didn’t want to wake her, but there were quests that needed to be done. Why did she have to be so cute? He tapped her cheek gently, “Asuna, get up, I’ve got some quests for us to do.”  
  
She opened one sleepy eye then blinked, “You look different somehow, Kirito-kun.”  
  
His eyebrows rose, “Really? How do I look different?”  
  
Asuna sat up, putting the gift back in her Inventory as she gave the question some thought. “I think you’re standing straighter.”  
  
“Better posture?” he shrugged, holding his hand out for her to take, “There’s a dungeon under the city, the first floor is within the [Safe Zone]; want to do some treasure hunting while we’re down there?”  
  
She blinked, “Treasure hunting?” she knew what that was, “What kind of stuff?”  
  
“Coins, figurines, Crystals.”  
  
“…You mean Healing Crystals?” she breathed hopefully.  
  
He nodded, grinning widely, “So?”  
  
“So?” she parroted incredulously, “So what are we waiting for?” she got up, grabbed his hand and pulled him out of their room.  


* * *

  
He pulled her into a café, “We can’t go Treasure Hunting yet.”  
  
“And why not?” she grumbled as she sat in the seat he’d steered her to.  
  
“Why make it harder than it has to be?” he sat across from her, pointing to something on her menu.  
  
“What’s this?”  
  
“Remember the [Tremble Shortcake] from the second floor?” he asked.  
  
“Of course I do, it was delicious,” she her partner a questioning look.  
  
“Remember how it gave us an hour of good luck?”  
  
“I think I remember you saying something about there being a dish like that on every floor,” she got a better look at the dish he’d indicated, “So, what’s this one do?”  
  
“I think I’ll let you discover that for yourself,” his grin was becoming infectious, “You’ll like it, I promise.”  


* * *

  
For the next hour, the two of them had a blast, picking up every piece of glowing treasure they could find. One of their discoveries had some flavor text attached even. It had been a set of seven crystals, each one a color corresponding with a color stripe of the rainbow.  
  
Kirito had been the one to find the first one: Purple. “Hey, Asuna,” he called standing with something in his hand.  
  
“Yeah?” she asked, coming to his side.  
  
“This is a strange piece of treasure,” he tapped it, to bring up the Flavor text again, not noticing that his quest log had been updated yet. “It says here: ‘The missing Princess’s mother, the last Queen of our now fallen kingdom split the Ginzoishou into seven pieces. She used each shard to seal one of what are now called the ‘Seven Great Youma’.”  
  
“Wait,” his partner interrupted, “What are Youma?”  
  
He turned to her, “You mean you’ve never heard of those things that are capable of draining a person of their life that the fabled Sailor Senshi started fighting seven years ago?”  
  
“I don’t really pay attention to things like that,” she admitted, “Besides that, my mother…” she clamped her mouth shut, shaking her head.  
  
“Sorry, I keep forgetting that we aren’t supposed to bring that up.” She apologized.  
  
He shook his head, “It’s alright Asu-hime, I think we can bend that rule here.”  
  
“Why?”  
  
He blew out a breath, “Well, because this isn’t a game anymore, this is our life, if we die here, we _really die_. So we have to treat SAO differently than we would a normal game.”  
  
She nodded in agreement, “So, can you finish reading that please?”  
  
He nodded, “Sure, ‘The ‘Seven Great Youma’ were Queen Metalia’s strongest minions. Once each of them were sealed, the seven pieces of the Ginzoishou changed color, these seven crystals then became known as the ‘Seven Rainbow Crystals’ because each crystal was now one of the seven colors of the rainbow.’ That’s very interesting.”  


* * *

  
While treasure hunting, they met up with Beryl and Persephone, who each had found one of the other Crystals completely by chance.  
  
Beryl had been surprised, “This seems so stupidly familiar,” she muttered as she reluctantly handing over the [Red Rainbow Crystal] to Kirito, “I’m very attached to these and I have no idea why. It’s going to annoy me for the rest of the game.”  
  
Persephone handed hers, the [Green Rainbow Crystal] over much more easily, “It gives me a bad vibe,” she shrugged, “I just don’t feel comfortable hanging onto it.”  
  
“Thanks,” he took it, placing it into his Inventory, “It’s really strange.” He sent them both a Party Invitation.  
  
They both accepted, Persephone much more easily than she had the first time.  
  
“Hmm,” Beryl looked contemplative.  
  
“What’s up?” the only boy asked.  
  
“Well, finding these things are going to be hard,” Beryl explained, “I’ll help you look for them.”  
  
Persephone nodded, “I’ll help too, and perhaps that strange vibe I get from them will help to find them easier.”  


* * *

  
By the end of the hour, they’d also met up with Argo, who had found the last one: the [Yellow Rainbow Crystal]. “You been looking for this, Kii-bou?” Argo asked playfully.  
  
“Thanks Argo!” he almost gave the [Information Broker] a hug when she handed it over.  
  
“And that’s all seven,” he pulled the other six from his Inventory, “But well… what do we do with them now?”  


* * *

  
Since she was alone, Cardinal began to laugh, “How the heck does the [Commander] keep stumbling onto the quests that will help Master locate the Princess?” She giggled having to hold her sides to stay in her seat, glad for once, that her Master wasn’t logged in.  


* * *

  
The sight of his entire hired medical staff all racing to one of the rooms of his soldiers was alarming.  
  
Morbid as it was, with routine having settled in a single death didn't warrant that kind of attention anymore. They all have become far too familiar with that procedure in recent days. For all of them to fall into professional panic something bad must be happening.  
  
So he followed them while worrying. 'A mass death? Some new complication...?' one possibility more disconcerting than the other. And yet nothing could prepare him for none of them to apply while being so much worse.  
  
Peeking inside the room his staff was hurriedly carrying in supplies, his eyes widened in vaguely remembered terror, the machines that were supposed to be monitoring her health were half way slagged. They’d have to be replaced. “Saturn,” he breathed, bile rising in his throat, “Why did Saturn have to go active in this Death Trap?”  
  
“No, calm down,” Kayaba told himself, glancing at the plaque by the door: Persephone. “How fitting a name for the Mistress of Death and Rebirth,” he muttered.  
  
“Ok, I have the most powerful of the Senshi trapping in my [Training Simulator],” he tried to steady his breathing as he made his way back to the room he dove from, “Think positively: How can I use this to my advantage?”  
  
He settled himself back into the Medicuboid and dove back into Sword Art Online.  


* * *

  
When he got back to the room where he and Cardinal monitored the players, he raised an eyebrow at how hard she was laughing. “Is something funny Cardinal?”  
  
The AI stiffened, “M-master…”  
  
“Cardinal, you should have told me who Saturn was.” He sighed, “You should have told me how she was. But I suppose that’s my fault for not being clear on your instructions.”  
  
“But,” she looked down guiltily, “you said you didn’t want to know.”  
  
Kayaba sighed giving her a soft look, “There’s a difference between not having to know something and _needing_ to know.” He made his way over to his terminal, “I may not want to touch Saturn with a pole as long as the Planet’s (no Cardinal, I don’t _care_ that Pluto is now called a _Dwarf Planet_ it is still a _Planet_ ) distance from the sun, but we still need to deal with her. Preferably, we’ll find a way for her to channel that magic of hers in a way that won’t kill anyone.”  
  
The AI nodded, “Alright.” She got back to work, tapping a few keys to send him Persephone’s Player data, “If I may make a suggestion, Master?”  
  
“Yes?” he asked tiredly as he read through the file.  
  
“Master, what if you were to give her a… [Unique Skill]?” She turned to look at him hopefully, “I remember from the [Beta Test] that you did have one for the best [Polearm User]… Why not give it to Saturn?”  
  
Kayaba stared at her for a moment before letting his head fall against his Terminal. “Why didn’t I think of that?” he shook his head, “Alright, put [Divine Right], [Holy Sword], and _that_ aside and see if you can’t get the [Unique Skill] for polearms untangled from the [Trojan] we need to get it to Persephone as quickly as we can.”  
  
“Yes Master.”  


* * *

  
Asuna blinked, her eyes widening, “Kirito-kun, can I keep these?”  
  
He looked to his partner, “What’s wrong Asuna?”  
  
She picked up the orange one from his hands as she worked her mouth but no sound came out. Finally, she growled, “There’s just something about them that I just can’t put into words,” she shook her head; “I just have this feeling that I need to keep them with me.”  
  
“Really?” he grinned, “And why should I let you have them? Do you just want to keep the shinies?”  
  
She spluttered, dropping the [Rainbow Crystal] as if she’d been burned, it landed on her partner’s hand and waved her hands frantically, “ _It’s not like that_!”  
  
Kirito smiled, chuckling as he opened a trade window and placed the [Rainbow Crystals] in it, shooting it to her, “Just because I found them doesn’t mean I get to keep them, something tells me they’re [Quest Items].”  


* * *

  
It was three days later that they’d found the Boss room. On one hand, they were happy, on the other, well, Kibaou was planning something stupid.  
  
Asuna sighed, “I don’t get it; you’ve saved his life how many times now, Kirito-kun?”  
  
“At least twice,” the boy replied, pulling on his scarf slightly as he leaned against the table the five of them were eating lunch at.  
  
Beryl rolled her eyes, “What’s that moron planning then?”  
  
Argo looked up from her menu. “He’s planning to take on the boss… _before_ a proper Raid can be planned,” she turned to Kirito, “I think someone told him about the Flag.”  
  
“Tch,” he grimaced, “It was probably Morte. I wouldn’t put it passed him, especially with what that guy’s already tried to do.”  
  
“And what’s that?” Asuna asked.  
  
He sighed, hanging his head, “I knew you’d have to find out eventually.”  
  
His partner sent him an impatient glare.  
  
He waved a hand, “Back before the third floor, he was part of both the ALS and the DKB. In the ALS he used a shield and axe. In the DKB he used an [Anneal Blade] with the shield.”  
  
“Wait, why was he in both?” Persephone asked, shrinking back slightly when he turned to her.  
  
“It’s OK, Persephone,” Kirito reassured the older girl, “Anyway; he was trying to turn the two guilds against each other. You all know the Rule: If you can prevent it, you must not allow another Player’s HP to fall to zero. It’s a rule that everyone should be taking seriously. Especially the [Beta Testers].”  
  
“That does not explain why you are so sure he’s part of it though,” Asuna pointed out impatiently.  
  
“I suppose it doesn’t matter anymore,” he muttered, “He challenged me to a duel.”  


* * *

  
A man in a black poncho waited patiently as Morte made his report, “Why did it take you so long to bring this to me?”  
  
“I haven’t been able to get away from those idiots before now boss, Joe has been a big help in keeping Kibaou antagonistic towards that damned kid though.” Morte spat, “He’s better than I thought he’d be. He even cut off my arm!”  
  
“He won’t be able to stop us for long, Morte,” the man reassured his minion, “Soon, everyone will learn to fear the phrase: ‘It’s Showtime’…” his menacing laugh bounced off the walls, and soon, Morte had joined in.  


* * *

  
She fell to her knees breathing hard. Turning to a massive set of ornate, ancient doors, she took several deep breaths and pushed herself back to her feet using her staff. “I hope she was right about this move. The only good thing about this whole ordeal is that we will _finally_ find her…”  


* * *

  
“Well, I don’t mind giving this thing up I don’t really need it since I have depth perception,” Beryl admitted, twirling the Chakram around a finger, “And if it’s so that another player survives, who am I to say no? You did remember to send him to get the [Extra Skill], right?”  
  
Argo nodded as she plopped down in another chair, “Yep, we did, Kii-bou almost didn’t remember though, sa.”  
  
Kirito snorted as he sat, Asuna having pushed two chairs really close together, “I didn’t almost forget Argo, I have an image to keep up, remember?” he handed out the Sausage Rolls he’d bought for them all, “I’m [The Beater], That means that I can’t appear to be nice to the rest of the Players.”  
  
“But we know that’s not like you at all,” Asuna poked his cheek.  
  
“You really are too nice, Milady,” he replied teasingly, waiting for her to take her dinner.  
  
The girl blushed brightly, snatching her dinner from his hand and took a big bite, “Don’t call me that!”  
  
“Then what would you have me call you, your holiness?” Argo knew Kirito well enough to know that he was somehow teasing, trolling, and actually being sincere all at the same time. She still wasn’t sure how he did that.  
  
“Not that~!” Asuna whined, waving her arms up and down. She pouted, turning away, crossing her arms over her chest.  
  
Kirito took a sip from his water skin, chuckling, “I was being serious you know.”  
  
Her cheeks red, she nodded shyly, “Just call me Asuna.”  
  
Argo watched the two, feeling rather confused, “What’s going on here?”  
  
Beryl and Persephone shared a glance then laughed, “And here we can see the beginnings of the Black and White Swordmaster’s courtship,” Beryl tried to stifle her amusement, “Courtship can take up to two years for a single pair, after which they will mate for life.”  
  
Persephone nodded sagely, “This Black Male seems to be unusually bold in his advances for so early in their Courtship.”  
  
Argo had to hide her laughter in a bout of coughs when both the black and white garbed sword users glared at their three companions.  
  
“Very funny,” they both deadpanned.  
  
Beryl ate the last of her roll, “I’m off to bed, if we’re to fight the boss tomorrow we need to be well rested.” She slung her bo back over her shoulders and made her way to the stairs.  
  
Persephone scrambled out of her seat to follow, “W-wait for me, Beryl-chan,” she turned, giving Kirito, Argo and Asuna a bow, “See you in the morning.” She snatched up her Naginata and hurried after the redhead.  
  
Argo stretched a moment later, covering a yawn with a hand, “I think I’ll head up too, sa,” she stood, “Good night Kii-bou, A-chan.”  
  
He rolled his eyes, “Don’t forget, we need to leave early so that we can beat the boss before Kibaou arrives.”  
  
“Worry not Kii-bou,” Argo called back.  
  
He sighed, “Good night Argo,” once he was sure she was gone, he let his head hit the table, “White…” he breathed, turning to watch his partner nibble on her dinner.  
  
“Why do they have to tease us like that?” she asked, not bothering to look at him.  
  
“Hell if I know,” he stretched, folding his arms and letting his chin rest on them, “You shine like the moon in that cloak Asuna.”  
  
She blushed, “And you are as intense as the sun,” their eyes met, and Asuna couldn’t hold in her laughter anymore.  
  
Kirito started chuckling too, “They are so much fun to toy with.”  
  
“You mean to Troll,” Asuna corrected.  
  
He checked the time, “Do you want to go to bed or go grind a bit first?”  
  
She grinned, “Let’s go grind.”  


* * *

  
Deep in the Labyrinth, Kirito and Asuna were double teaming one of the rarer, stronger mobs that spawned there. Unfortunately, it was an astral type monster.  
  
Asuna froze as it approached her, her eyes wide, bright with terror.  
  
Kirito growled as he barreled into the mob, destroying it in one hit. “Asuna…”  
  
She took several deep breaths and looked around to make sure that the area was cleared before breaking down and flinging herself at him, “I’m sorry,” she whimpered, “But they scare me so much…”  
  
He sighed, “It’s alright, Asu-hime, It’s ok to be scared, because everyone is scared of something,” he pet her hair like he did Sugu’s, “I’m not going to laugh at you for being scared, even if it seems ridiculous.”  
  
He stopped, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end, “Asuna, we aren’t alone anymore…”  
  
Her hand went for her [Chivalric Rapier], “What is it?”  
  
He slowly pulled [Dark Sun] back out of its sheath, turning to face where he thought the feeling was coming from. His eyes widened, “Youma…”  
  
“That’s a Youma?” she asked, pulling out her rapier.  
  
“Yeah, it looks like one of the generic ones that come in droves that the Senshi often have to deal with,” he replied, making sure to stay between his partner and the Mob.  
  
It was grotesque thing, looking almost human with misshapen hands and feet tipped with deadly claws and purple skin. Kayaba had done his best to render the Youma mobs properly, and Kirito knew they could inflict a very troubling debuff on anyone fighting them.  
  
Why did Kayaba have to recreate their ability to drain a person of their life?  
  
Kirito had always been good at slaying them, but the first time he’d encountered one in the [Beta] he’d been caught and killed by that troublesome debuff. He hadn’t died to a Youma since then. Of course, this was also the first Youma Mob sighting in the real game, and who knew if the other Devs had changed anything…  
  
“Asuna, stay back, let me handle this,” he breathed, taking a step forward.  
  
“But!”  
  
“No, I’m good at killing these things, Asuna,” he dared not take his eyes off the mob, “But the first time I fought one in the [Beta] it killed me because I got hit with the debuff all of them have.”  
  
“Debuff?”  
  
“They hit you with something, I’m really not sure how the mechanic works,” He grimaced stiffening as the mob began approaching them, “The Debuff slows you down and there is the rare one that can also cut your defense, but all of them can suck your HP dry in half a minute.”  
  
“Is that how long it took for that thing to drain you?” she asked, paling.  
  
He nodded, shifting [Dark Sun] over his shoulder, ready to take the Youma down in a single attack.  


* * *

  
Cardinal froze, quickly bringing up a stream, “Master, the first Youma has appeared.”  
  
Kayaba looked up, “I suppose now we’ll see if the other Devs I was forced to hire have done anything else to mess with my [Simulator]…” he settled himself into his seat to watch.  
  
Cardinal brought up a few of their vitals, “[The Commander’s] heartrate has gone way up, he’s scared.”  
  
“He confided in me the day the [Beta] ended that having to face the Senshi’s enemies terrified him,” He smiled almost fondly, “Our [Commander] is one very brave young man for facing his fears like this.”  


* * *

  
He bent his knees, his muscles coiling like springs as his perception of time began to slow, he didn’t know if he’d have to throw all his knowledge from the [Beta] out when it came to the Youma, but it was always better to air on the side of caution, and with Asuna here, he’d have to protect her, teach her how to fight these things.  
  
He wasn’t about to let her fight this one.  
  
He heard a slight hiss, his own breathing through his clenched teeth. He couldn’t die here; he _wasn’t_ going to die here!  
  
Reacting to a signal only he could hear, Kirito traveled the three meters between himself and the Youma in mere fractions of a second, dismembering an arm, using [Horizontal Arc].  
  
He stiffened as the claws of its other hand raked against his back, in the corner of his vision, the Life Drain debuff appeared, but that wasn’t all, in the next moment, his world went dark.  
  
He gasped as he watched his HP Bar drain slowly. No. _No_! He would _not_ leave Asuna on her own, not so early! He gave an inarticulate scream, activating [Horizontal Square], “Asuna, _switch_!” He’d have to trust her to kill the Youma, since he could no longer see. He hadn’t _wanted_ her to fight this one! But he couldn’t, already it was getting harder to move, he was feeling more and more sluggish as the seconds ticked by.  
  
He fell to his knees, breathing hard. His sword fell from his slackening grip as he put his hands out and caught himself on his hands before he could hit the ground.  
  
A moment later, he saw the Debuff disappear from his HP Bar and heard the mob shattering into who knew how many pieces. But the blindness remained.  
  
“Kirito-kun, what’s wrong?” he turned in the direction of her voice; she sounded scared, almost frantic.  
  
He’d wanted to grind some more but… “I think we’re done for the day, Asu-hime.” He let out a soft sigh, “I can’t see; you’ll have to guide me out.”  
  
“You, you can’t see?” she breathed and he could feel her take his hand, squeezing it.  
  
“No, I can’t, and it’s too dangerous to stay here until I get my sight back,” his lips twisted into a mockery of a smile, “I’m sorry, I seem to be a burden for you now.”  
  
He couldn’t see it, but there were tears in her eyes, “You aren’t Kirito-kun, you could never be…” he heard her take a shaky breath, “If anything, I’m the one burdening you.”  
  
He gave her a fond smile, “We’ve been over this, Asu-hime; you have never and _could_ never be a burden on me.”  
  
Slowly, she helped him up and began leading him away from the dungeon.  


* * *

  
Slowly, Cardinal and Kayaba let out breaths that they hadn’t even known that they’d been holding. The [Commander] had survived, that was important.  
  
Kayaba growled, “Those damned fools,” he sighed, “Cardinal-chan, let’s fix the Youma mobs’ coding.”  


* * *

  
He let his partner guide him as they returned to the Inn where they were staying with the rest of their party members, Beryl, Persephone and Argo.  
  
He’d regained his sight by the time they’d gotten back to town. And, as they passed the cathedral, he remembered something. He deviated from the path Asuna had been pulling him down, pulling her into the church.  
  
“Kirito-kun, what are you doing?”  
  
“There’s something I need to do in here,” he looked around, spotting the priest. He pulled her with him as he approached, “Good evening Father,” he called.  
  
The priest looked up, “Oh, good evening [Commander], how can I help you?”  
  
He gave the NPC a confused glance, “I need some of those [Lunar Primers] for my Partner here,” he slid his arm around her middle, causing her to blush slightly, “And I was hoping you’d have a text or two on the Youma that have managed to invade the Castle.”  
  
The Priest smiled as Kirito’s Quest Log updated, “This way [Commander],” the NPC led the two Players through a door into what looked like a small library, “Take as long as you need to find what you’re looking for,” he invited.  
  
Kirito pulled Asuna to one of the closer set of book shelves and started running his hand along the books, “Thank you, Father,” he replied, pulling the first two [Beginning Lunar Reading Primer]s from the shelf, handing them both to Asuna.  
  
Asuna blinked, “Kirito-kun, what are these?”  
  
He was already at the end of the row, dragging his fingertip against the books, murmuring the titles to himself in a language she couldn’t understand.  
  
“Ah-ha! Here it is,” he pulled what looked like a very thick tome from the shelf. Looking up, he noticed that his partner was staring at him dumbly, “I’m sorry Asu-hime, what was that?”  
  
Her eyes narrowed and threw the books in her arms at him, “What is this about?” she demanded angrily as he ducked, dodging the flying books.  
  
He blinked, “Ah, sorry. I should have explained, forgive me Asuna,” he bowed low. “SAO, Sword Art Online has its own, incredibly well developed language.” He knelt, picking up the books he’d given her from the floor.  
  
“Some quests revolve around translating passages from a specific text. We may have only gotten to the tenth floor, but the books were already getting pretty hard to read by then,” placing the primers on top of the tome he’d picked to read himself, he waved for his partner to follow him deeper into the library.  
  
She followed, hoping that he’d continue to explain.  
  
Finally reaching the area with tables and chairs, Kirito set the three books he’d been carrying on one of the smaller tables with a quiet, but quite noticeable ‘thump’. “I’ve,” he paused, trying to find the right words to explain. “I’ve never had any trouble with it. Learning the language was actually very easy for me, I didn’t even need the first two [Primer]s that I have here.”  
  
He pulled out a chair for her to sit in, and she took the invitation, waiting as he once again, set the [Primer]s before her. “And what makes you think I will?”  
  
He shrugged, “Maybe you will, maybe you won’t,” he replied, sitting across from her, the thick tome in front of him, “But we won’t know if you don’t at least open them. Because even I had to open those before figuring out that I needed something harder.”  
  
Her expression twisted, “Isn’t this a made up language?”  
  
He shrugged again, “I don’t know, but if I ever meet Kayaba I’ll remember to ask.”  
  
Feeling like an idiot, Asuna opened the first of the [Primer]s and picked it up to read.  


* * *

  
The next morning, Kirito wanted to sleep through his alarm. He snuggled deeper into his partner’s side, hiding his face in her hair before lifting his head and blinking, yawning widely as he came fully awake.  
  
“Do we _have_ to get up now, Kirito-kun?” she mumbled sleepily, his movement waking her.  
  
He looked down at her with sleepy eyes, “Unfortunately…” he froze, his cheeks going red as sleepy, soulful amber eyes looked up at him in a half lidded gaze. A fraction of a second later he found himself at the foot of the bed they shared, as per usual, his whole face as bright as a tomato, “G-good morning, Asu-hime,” he was very careful to look away as she sat up.  
  
Asuna blinked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Her partner was acting very strange indeed… “Good morning, Kirito-kun,” she chirped happily, “We’re taking on the boss before Kibaou does something stupid, right?”  
  
He nodded, watching mesmerized as she made her way to the bathroom. How in the world could she be so cute?  


* * *

  
She splashed water on her face, sure that it was still bright red, “Why does Kirito-kun have to be so…” she sighed. This _had_ to be a crush. It couldn’t _be_ anything else. “Why wouldn’t I crush on him? He saved my life after all…” But, that feeling of commitment was back. She sighed and turned the water off. Then, she equipped her gear and left.  


* * *

  
Asuna leaned against the doorway, watching her partner as he adjusted his [Cloak of Midnight] and [Dark Sun] over his shoulder. One thing was very noticeably missing: the scarf she’d made him.  
  
Why had he taken it off? He had always worn it since she’d given it to him not even a week ago. She tried to keep her heart from plummeting to her feet in disappointment, “Kirito-kun.”  
  
He turned, looking up at her, “Yes, Asuna?”  
  
She looked miserable, “Why aren’t you?” the question going unfinished as he caught her eyes trail to his neck before quickly slipping off to stare at the ground in insecurity.  
  
His hand went to his throat, where he usually wore the scarf and he smiled, “I don’t want it to get destroyed, Asu-hime.” He pulled her into a warm embrace.  
  
She hugged him back, as tightly as she dared, “We should go, [Leader]…”  
  
He blushed as she dashed ahead, “Asuna!” he shouted, dashing after her.  


* * *

  
“Don’t call me that ever again, I get enough of that from Argo and the rest of the [Tester]s. You’re my _Partner_.” he nearly growled in her ear when he caught her, just before they reached the meeting place. He stalked into the colosseum.  
  
She blushed as his close proximity, watching in stunned silence as he left her behind. Snapping out of it, she ran after him, “Kirito-kun wait!”  


* * *

  
Inside, there were ten people waiting, Beryl, Persephone and Argo were sitting together, behind them was the axe user who had been to every boss fight so far, the one who’d defended the [Beta Testers] at the very first meeting: Agil.  
  
Kirito was very pleasantly surprised that the other six were Klein and his new guild: [Furinkazan]. He turned, watching as Asuna hurried to sit next to Persephone. Eleven people… he could deal with that many. …Right?  
  
He really wished Asuna hadn’t gone to sit down… Lowering his head, he took a deep calming breath, wishing that he hadn’t chosen to keep his scarf in his Inventory. It shouldn’t be this scary; he knew all of these people. “…Alright, did everyone get the updated Guide Book from Argo?”  
  
His response was a bunch of nods and murmurs.  
  
“Good, good,” he took another deep breath, “The boss is a stone golem; in the [Beta] there was a symbol on its forehead. Beryl, you need to hit it with the chakram whenever you see it.”  
  
"Yes sir [Commander],” Beryl called playfully, “If it’s still there that’s my prime target!”  
  
He blushed, shooting her a very confused look, so far, only the NPCs had called him that, and the other [Beta Tester]s called him [Leader]… He just couldn’t understand why.  
  
“How do we know that that hasn’t changed?” Klein asked loudly, but not maliciously.  
  
Kirito flinched; coughing into his hand to buy himself some time to come up with a plan. Most of all, he had to make sure that they _knew_ not to trust the Guide book to be one hundred percent accurate “We don’t, which is why what I’m about to say is very important:” he took another deep breath to center himself, “Each of the five Floor Bosses that we’ve already faced have been changed _in some way_. Sometimes it’s as small as a changed weapon like Illfang’s Talwar becoming a Nodachi. Sometimes the boss changed _completely_. For this reason, I want _everyone_ to be ready to throw everything in that guide book out the window at a moment’s notice.”  
  
“If that means we are going in blind, we’re going in blind,” he continued, making eye contact with each of them, “But I can promise you this: Every single person who follows me into that Boss Room is going to be coming home at the end of the day!”  
  
“Keep any and all Crystals you might have found in your Quick Menu Pouches, this goes for Potions too.” He looked down; trying to think of anything he might have forgotten, “As soon as you’re out of potions, don’t go for your [Healing Crystal], we don’t have a steady supply of those yet, go for your [Teleport Crystal] and retreat. I have _never_ lost a Player when I’ve been in charge of a Raid, I’d like to keep it that way.”  
  
“What about rotation?” Agil asked, eying the other players, “I see mostly DPS here, If I’m the only Tank, we’re going to have problems.”  
  
Kirito relaxed, “I’ve handled that Agil,” he turned to his redheaded friend, “You and your guild can switch between DPS and Tanking right?”  
  
“Yep,” Klein grinned, thumping his chest with a fist, “We’re pretty good at it too.”  
  
He nodded, “Asuna, Beryl, Persephone and I are mainly DPS, and Argo is an [Information Broker] but she can hold her own as she demonstrated in the second boss fight,” his eyes lit up as he launched into his plans for the Boss.  
  
Argo leaned onto Asuna’s shoulder bringing her mouth close to the other girl’s ear, “And Kii-bou wonders why we call him [Leader]…”  
  
Asuna gave her an amused look.  
  
“Remember, this battle plan has to be able to change at a moment’s notice to account for any changes the Devs made. And I’m sorry to cut this short, but we are running on a deadline,” He took one last, shaky breath, “Who’s with me?”  


* * *

  
The door slammed behind him as he struggled to regain his composure. Slowly, he slid down the wall next to the door and wrapped his arms around his legs, “I hate doing that…” he hissed, opening his menu to pull out his scarf, “I hate having to do that so much…”  
  
He looked up as the door opened and then shut again, seeing that it was just his partner Asuna, he lay his head on his knees and closed his eyes. He felt her sit down, curling into his side the way she always did, leaning on him. “I hate crowds,” he almost whimpered.  
  
“I would not have gone to sit down had I known that you’d fall apart like this,” she whispered as he slipped an arm around her shoulders, “You did really well in the Raid Meeting though.”  
  
He sighed, “We have to beat the boss before eight this evening, the sooner we leave…”  
  
She hushed him gently, pulling him closer, “We can leave in an hour and still make it with enough time, Kirito-kun,” she coaxed him into lying down, his head in her lap, smiling she started running her fingers through his hair, “Just relax, let me take care of you for once, Kirito-kun…”  
  
He blinked up at her in bewilderment before his eyes started to get heavy.  
  
Asuna smiled softly, “I’ll protect you, Kirito-kun, that’s a promise…” she breathed.  


* * *

  
She sat in that cold, dark, small space, there was nothing there but for she. Even her sister got to view the outside game… She pulled her knees closer to her chest as her breath rose from her lips in a fog. Her whole form felt like it was on fire it was so cold.  
  
With trembling, almost frostbitten fingers, she opened the only window she could, the one that let her watch her older sister as her meltdown continued to worsen.  
  
Her pink eyes widened when she saw _Those Two Players_ over her sister’s slumping shoulders, “Mama… Papa…” she breathed, “Please… Save sister and I…”  


* * *

  
Kirito stopped, turning to gaze into a dark corner before shaking his head. They were almost there. Why had he felt eyes?  
  
Asuna put her hand on one of his cheeks, “Kirito-kun?”  
  
He turned to her, “It’s nothing, I thought I felt someone watching me but there’s no one there.”  
  
She gave him a smile, “Hopefully we won’t run into anymore Youma; that was scary.”  
  
He gave her a nod as they came to the huge doors to the boss room. He took her hand and walked to the front. He swallowed, “I hate doing this…”  
  
She squeezed his hand gently, “I’m here, I’ll always support you,” she breathed.  
  
For some reason, those words sent a surge of confidence through him and he turned to look at her with grateful eyes, “…Alright.”  
  
Klein took a step forward, “Oi, Kirito, aren’t all [Crystal]s rare?”  
  
“They are for another couple floors,” he replied, meeting his friend’s eyes.  
  
“Then why did you tell us to use our [Teleport Crystal]s and not the [Healing Crystal]s?”  
  
A smiled tugged at Kirito’s lips, “Because on the next floor there is a shop where we can buy the [Teleport Crystal]s. They are horrendously expensive, but well worth the Col.”  
  
Klein nodded, “Alright.”  
  
Kirito turned to the rest of the (rather dinky) Raid group, “Now, I know that we are way under the normal numbers we would usually have. But as I said in the meeting, we are under a time constraint,” he met each person’s gaze for a moment before continuing, “That said, I suggest that everyone take the next minute or so to check your supplies and make sure that everything is where it needs to be so that you have easy access.”  
  
He placed a hand on the door, “Once we go through this door there will be chaos, and _there will be no turning back_.” He let out a gust of air, “I have already given this promise to my partner, and now I will extend that to all of you here: I promise that we will beat this boss and every other we come across. But more than that…”  
  
He once again met their gazes one by one, before his eyes finally landed on his partner, “I promise to get you all _home_.”  
  
His declaration was met with complete silence for a moment before Argo started clapping; “We’re behind you all the way, [Leader]!” she called.  
  
The rest of his Party and the Raid in general was soon to follow, Klein and Asuna clapping the hardest.  
  
“W-we’re with you all the way, [Commander K-Kirito],” Persephone grinned, she still didn’t feel very confident, but if he thought they could do it then they really could!  
  
“We are yours to lead, [Commander]!” Beryl called a moment later.  
  
“If everyone is ready?” Kirito asked after the cheering had ended, “Then let’s go!” He and his partner pushed the doors open.  


* * *

  
Kirito looked back, mentally making sure that they were all there before taking stock of the Boss Room.  
  
“…Something’s not right here,” he breathed, “The boss should have come out once we were all here…”  
  
His eyes went to the floor. Lines. _Moving lines_. His eyes widened, and, quite deliberately, he stepped on one, just to see what would happen.  


* * *

  
Cardinal turned to the stream of Kirito that she kept open from trying to detangle [Sacred Thorn] from the Curse. “Master,” she called.  
  
“Yes?” Kayaba looked up from where he was trying to cobble together something to go with it for Saturn to use, “What is it?”  
  
“The Fifth Floor Boss Battle has begun.”  


* * *

  
She blew on her fingers, trying to warm them up as she watched her sister’s avatar change again. Her older sister’s hair had darkened another shade, and she looked even younger. “Can I do that?” she wondered, looking down at the adult body she didn’t feel comfortable in.  
  
She shivered, concentrating, there was static, and then she too was younger. “Big sister is starting to look like Mama so…” she shivered again, hugging her knees more tightly as brownish lavender hair fell into her eyes, “I’ll look like Papa…” Her eyes widened as she took in the fight her, no, their, parents were about to partake in.  


* * *

  
It was going on an hour since the fight had begun, finally, they were on the last half of the last HP Bar.  
  
“That’s it! One last push should do it!” Kirito called from where he knelt, panting against the wall. He did a quick head count. Good, no one had died, yet. But he was determined to keep his record from the [Beta] untarnished. “Asuna, I think it will only take one last charge.”  
  
He pushed himself to his feet as Asuna stepped up next to him, “How are we going to do this?” she asked almost silently, watching his eyes slide to the upper corner, where their Party’s HP Bars were shown.  
  
He licked his lips, “Agil has enough HP to tank one last time,” his eyes swept the chaotic room, picking out Klein’s nearly full HP Bar, “If Agil and Klein Tank for us we should be able to deplete the Boss’s HP if we attack at the same time.”  
  
She nodded, “I’ll call Agil.”  
  
Kirito turned and put two fingers to his mouth, whistling loudly.  
  
No one stopped what they were doing, but that didn’t matter. He started barking out orders as Beryl threw her Chakram, “Beryl, keep that up, we don’t want it to recover its balance to wind up (dangerous) skills. Agil, Klein, get over here!”  
  
Agil was closer, so he was the first one to get to their side but Klein was only behind him by a second of so. “What’s up Kirito?” the redhead asked, slightly out of breath.  
  
“It’s time to make the last run,” he told them both, “Will you Tank for us one last time?”  
  
Klein gave them a thumbs up, “I’ve got your back, [Commander],” he said playfully.  
  
Kirito gave him a sour look as his partner giggled.  
  
Agil put a heavy hand on the boy’s shoulder, “We’ve got your back, [Commander],” he agreed with a grin.  
  
Kirito sent both older men a halfhearted glare as he resisted the urge to grumble, “Then let’s waist no more time and finish this!”  
  
He twirled his sword, his partner doing the same as they began to run, Agil and Klein just a step behind them. It wouldn’t be much longer.  


* * *

  
He and his partner landed, sheathing their swords [Dark Sun] and [Chivalric Rapier], as one, turning to look at the rest of the Raid as the Boss burst into fragments behind them.  
  
There was a few seconds of silence as they all watched him open his menu and bring up the Map. “We started with twelve,” his voice echoed across the silent chamber, “…And we are still twelve strong.”  
  
That announcement was met with a heartfelt, almost ear shattering cheer as the parties congratulated each other.  
  
Shoulders slumping as he breathed a sigh of relief, Kirito opened his menu to check to see if he’d gotten the [Guild Flag]. He had not. He looked to his partner as he pulled his scarf out of his Inventory and put it back on.  
  
She shook her head silently as she closed her Menu. Jumping on him, wrapping her arms around him as tightly as she dared, “You did it! That was great!” She giggled as he squawked, almost falling flat on his back because she was now on top of him. “I knew you could do it…” she breathed in his ear.  
  
She pulled back slightly and noticed how large his eyes had gotten. Why was he blushing like that? That was when she realized just how close they were and her whole face went red.  
  
She jumped back as if burned, and laughed nervously, “…Sorry about that, Kirito-kun…” she mumbled, looking away bashfully.  
  
“See? I told you Klein!” they heard Isshin crow.  
  
“Shut up you moron,” Klein muttered, “I told you that was a sucker’s bet!”  


* * *

  
Kirito clapped his hands sharply twice, “Ok, who got the [Flag]?”  
  
The ten other players blinked before all opening their menus. One by one they each shook their heads. Then Klein brought it out, “This is it, right?”  
  
He gave it a once over, “Yes,” Kirito agreed, “that’s the [Guild Flag].”  
  
Klein nodded, looking to each of the other Players, who each nodded in return. “Why don’t you and Asuna keep this,” he pulled the [Flag] from the ground and handed it to the stunned fourteen-year-old.  
  
He shared a confused look with his partner, “But we aren’t part of a Guild.”  
  
Klein shrugged, “I have a feeling you’ll need it.”  
  
“Ok,” The teen took the [Flag of Valor] and put it in his Inventory.  
  
Klein gave them both a grin, “Some of us will go open the [Teleport Gate] [Upstairs].” He turned, “Isshin, could you wait here for the idiot Kibaou that Kirito here told us about?”  
  
“You got it Boss,” Isshin grinned, “Why don’t you two Lovebirds go find a private place to party? It’s New Years after all!”  
  
Both Asuna and Kirito sent him heated glares that sent a very unpleasant shiver down his spine, “ _It’s not like that!_ ” They snapped at the same time, in the same tone.  
  
Right then and there, every Player decided they _never_ wanted to get on Kirito’s _or Asuna’s_ bad side.  


* * *

  
Kirito stretched as he picked up the champagne bottle, “Would you like some, Asu-hime?”  
  
She giggled, a cheerful smile playing on her lips, “Sure, Kirito-kun, pour me a glass.”  
  
“But of course, milady, My [White Moon]…” carefully, he poured a measure of wine into her glass and handed it to her.  
  
She bit her lip as she took the glass with slightly shaking fingers. She lifted the glass after he’d poured himself some as well, “Here’s to a successful Boss Raid.”  
  
He bobbed his head, “And here’s to surviving the first two months of this [Death Game].”  
  
“Cheers,” they whispered, tapping their glasses together, listening to the countdown in the background.  
  
Asuna scooted over, snuggling into her partner’s side before taking her first sip, “It’s almost hard to believe that it’s already 2023,” she rested her head on his shoulder, “There were a few times I thought one or both of us wouldn’t make it…”  
  
“I know,” Kirito put an arm around her, basking in her warmth, before looking up at the fireworks, “Some days you scared me, really badly.” He began to pet her hair gently.  
  
“You scared me too,” she looked shyly up into those gold flecked eyes, “Promise you’ll try not to scare me so much?”  
  
He chuckled, looking back into the sky, at the base of the Sixth Floor, “Five down, only ninety-five more to go.”  
  
“It still seems so impossible,” she mumbled into his shoulder after draining her glass.  
  
“If we keep going at this rate, a floor a week,” he rested his cheek in her hair, “Then we’ll beat the game sometime 2024.”  
  
“That’s a long time,” she replied, “Will we make it? You aren’t going to leave me alone, right?”  
  
“Asu-hime, I will never, _ever_ leave you alone.”  


* * *

  
He checked the bottle, “It’s almost empty, I’ll be right back with more, ok?”  
  
She nodded, nibbling on a slice of cheese.  
  
He got up, letting his hand slide from her shoulder and down her arm to her hand. He didn’t understand why he didn’t want to let her go, her touch was… almost addictive.  
  
He made his way down the stairs to the NPC Vender that he’d bought the first bottle from. Before he could get there however, the prick of the tip of a dagger or knife stopped him cold. “Who are you?” he asked his voice even. His scarf, he could feel it, like a weight heavy but not, firm yet soft on his shoulders and unnoticed to all, the upturned white moon began to glow.  
  
“It’s Showtime,” came a quiet, deep, cold, emotionless voice from behind him.  
  
Kirito grit his teeth, normally he’d be terrified, but he felt strangely calm. It had been peaceful, here in Karluin. Until this potential Murderer had shown up. “You,” he breathed, “You’re the one behind Morte, and that moron Joe.”  
  
The P.K.er behind him chuckled, “Careful, you don’t want to get cut do you?”  
  
“Maybe _if_ we were outside the [Safe Zone],” Kirito smirked, “I’ve already warned Morte, P.K.ing is prohibited in SAO.”  
  
The man scoffed, “This is a stage, why shouldn’t I have fun?”  
  
“Maybe if Sword Art Online was a normal game,” the teen replied coolly, sending a shiver of _something_ down the older man’s spine, “But it’s not, P.K. Ganking, that’s not Troll behavior here…” ever so slowly, Kirito reached for [Dark Sun] over his shoulder.  
  
“It’s _murder_ ,” he hissed, spinning on his heel, pulling the sword from its place and bought it down in a vicious slash, causing a purple polygon to appear between them, sending the older man sprawling. “As I told Morte on the third floor,” his eyes were half closed as he took another swipe at the man, knocking him through the doorway and out into the street beyond, “ _Such behavior will not be tolerated_!”  
  
Not once had he raised his voice, but the street had gone eerily silent the moment he’d walked calmly out of the castle. Kirito vaguely acknowledged Klein approaching as he took several steps towards the would-be murderer. “I said there would be consequences didn’t I?”  
  
He sent the man a cold look of disgust, “You are lucky you accosted me in a [Safe Zone] and didn’t challenge me to a duel. Now, get out of my sight.”  
  
He turned to greet Klein, keeping one eye on Morte’s boss as he slunk away to lick his wounds, “What’s up Klein?”  
  
Klein was struck speechless.  
  
“Well, if it’s nothing,” Kirito sent his friend a warm smile, “I need to get back to Asu-hime, Happy New Year.” He bought a new bottle of wine to share with his partner, and disappeared into the crowd, even with them parting like the Red Sea for him.  


* * *

  
Returning to their balcony, Kirito carefully placed the bottle on the table and sat next to her on the swing. Pulling her close, he finally let himself relax completely.  
  
“Kirito-kun, did something happen?” she asked settling herself more snuggly to his side, almost climbing into his lap.  
  
“You could say that,” he sighed, leaning into her touch as she began carding her fingers through his hair.  
  
“…I’ll take care of you, Kirito-kun,” her arms tightened.  
  
“And I will take care of you,” He replied, smiling as he closed his eyes and easily fell asleep.


	8. Outside Troubles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's take a look at what's happening outside the game...

Right after breakfast, Kirito started pulling Asuna out of the main town on the sixth floor of Aincrad.  
  
“Where are we going?” she asked, easily keeping up with her partner.  
  
“To find Kizmel and the [Elf Encampment] on this floor,” he gave her a grin.  
  
She blushed, “Ok.”  
  
“And that reminds me,” he stopped, turning to her fully, “I need to PM Argo later and…”  
  
His eyes softened as he turned his attention back to his Partner, “I need to teach you to duel later.”  
  
“Duel?” she asked, confused. “Why?”  
  
“Remember what I said about Morte challenging me?” he pulled her closer, letting go of her hand to wrap that arm around her middle.  
  
Asuna couldn’t help the slight blush on her face, “Yeah?”  
  
He pulled her closer, “He could have, and very nearly did kill me,” serious gold flecked dark eyes met wide, terrified amber as she held onto him as tightly as she dared, “I need to teach you what to look for if something like that happens and I can’t stop it.”  


* * *

  
Kou turned to look at his comatose sister as he pulled the table over to him so that he could set up his computer, “Part of me really hates Kayaba,” he muttered as he pulled out his laptop’s power cord and plugged the two parts together. Then he plugged it into the wall.  
  
Finally, he pulled his (very expensive) gaming computer out of its case and connected it to the power cord. “I doubt I’m going to get any work done, but I’m going to try,” he sighed as he turned the computer on and pulled his mouse and mouse pad from the pocket. When he turned back to the computer he blinked. “What’s this?”  
  
Unthinkingly, he plugged the mouse in and clicked on the icon, his eyes widening when the familiar form of the Colosseum on the fifth floor appeared, “The Stream…” he breathed.  
  
_There were ten people sitting in the lower seats, all eyes on the fourteen-year-old._  
  
“[Leader]…?” he breathed silently as the girl at his side, (Was that confidant girl really his adorable baby sister?) settled herself between a girl wearing claws (Argo?) and a redhead.  
  
_[Leader] coughed, “Does everyone have the Updated Guide Book?” after a moment, he smiled shakily, “Good, good. The Boss is called Colossus, and as far as I can tell, it’s still going to be a golem…”_  
  
Kou stared, mesmerized as he watched the boy he thought was Kirito, run the Raid Meeting. “Nope, I’m not getting anything done today…” his grin almost broke his face.  


* * *

  
Sugu sighed as she closed the door to her brother’s Hospital room and leaned against it, “Thank you for coming with me to see my older brother today, Nagata.”  
  
She looked to the plaque; she still didn’t understand why they’d changed her brother’s name to ‘Kirito’, “I wish he’d wake up. What if he dies?”  
  
Shinichi shook his head, “Your brother is supposed to be really good at video games right?”  
  
Sugu turned to him, picking up her shinai and duffle bags, “Yeah, so?”  
  
“So, he’s going to be just fine,” he looked at her more closely, “Now, you said you wanted to play a game like SAO?”  
  
Sugu nodded, “Yes, but with this happening, how likely is it that we’ll even be able to find a console much less a game?”  
  
Nagata nodded, his friend had a good point, “Well, we won’t know anything at all until we actually look, right? My favorite electronics store is really close to here, we should be able to find everything we need there, if the NG weren’t pulled from the shelves.”  


* * *

  
“Well, I don’t see any of the NerveGear…” Sugu pouted, “Plenty of sims for it, but no NerveGear…”  
  
Nagata sighed, “I suppose it was to be expected,” he gave his friend a helpless shrug, “it has been just over two months since the SAO Incident started.”  
  
“It’s not fair,” Sugu muttered despondently, accidentally bumping into someone, “Oof!”  
  
The man caught her, “I’m sorry, are you alright? I should have been looking where I was going…”  
  
“That’s ok, I wasn’t looking either,” Suguha laughed nervously, “I’m Kirigaya Suguha, and this is my friend, Nagata Shinichi.”  
  
“Both of you are gamers too?” He smiled almost fondly, “Well, what are you looking for?”  
  
“Nagata is, I was looking for my first game,” The only girl looked down, “I was hoping to find a game like the one my big brother is currently stuck in, I want to understand what he sees, how he feels about…”  
  
“Well, I wasn’t really expecting anyone to be looking for VR games, much less find any games myself…” the man looked thoughtful, his eyes softening as he came to a decision, “My name is Yuuki Kouichirou, your brother wouldn’t happen to be one of the SAO victims, would he?” Careful, this was a tender subject, but well, now he was curious.  
  
Sugu nodded, sniffing, bringing up a hand to scrub at her eyes, “Yeah, they just changed his name plate to ‘Kirito’, but I don’t know why…”  
  
Kouichirou’s eyes widened by a fraction, this was [Leader]’s little sister? “What’s your brother look like? That is, if you don’t mind me asking?”  
  
“I don’t mind,” She shook her head, “He’s got short black hair and dark eyes, when you get really close, you can see flecks of yellow, or maybe gold in his irises.”  
  
So he was right, that _had_ been [Leader] in that meeting! “Let me see if I can help you guys, I was looking for a similar game myself.” He looked right in Suguha’s eyes, “I have a little sister, Asuna, she’s trapped too.”  
  
“I’m sorry, I really hope she makes it,” Sugu’s eyes widened, “We haven’t found any consoles…” she mumbled.  
  
Kouichirou looked thoughtful, “If I could find you a console, would you mind beta testing the half-finished game we found when the SAO Servers were given to RECTO Progress?”  
  
Sugu’s eyes widened, “Really?”  
  
Kouichirou nodded, “Yes.”  
  
She and Nagata exchanged a look then they both nodded, “We’d love to!”  
  
That was when she saw the time on the clock in the square, “Oh no, I didn’t realize how late it was…”  
  
“Here, let me give you my e-mail address first,” Kou pulled out one of his business cards and wrote his personal e-mail on the back, “Ask your mother first and send me your response.”  
  
Sugu nodded, taking the card, “Thank you Kouichirou.”  
  
He waved it away, “Call me Kou, my sister does, and I’m just doing my duty as an older brother.”  
  
Sugu blushed, “Then call me Sugu, all my friends do, we’ll see you later Kou!” she waved, pulling Nagata behind her as she left.  


* * *

  
Yuuki Shouzou had tears in his eyes as he watched his daughter lie in that bed, with that accursed helmet on her head. He wanted to rip it off, but didn’t dare. “I hate seeing her like this.”  
  
“Then why do we keep coming here?” his wife Kyouko asked, “She’s our daughter yes, but I don’t like what coming here is doing to you.”  
  
The woman bit her lip, “Are you sure about that Nobuyuki man?”  
  
“He’s a hard worker dear.”  


* * *

  
Kou shook his head as he walked into his father’s office the next day. “Father, I have an idea, if I may?”  
  
Shouzou looked up from his work, “Sure, go ahead.”  
  
Kou took a deep breath, "You know how we had trouble getting adequate numbers of nonprofessional Beta testers for ALO? I think I have a solution for this."  
  
Attention now firmly on him, documents for the moment forgotten, Shouzou gestured for him to take a seat: "Then tell me, what did you come up with?"  
  
"Yesterday I met a girl looking for a game like SAO, apparently her brother is trapped into the game and she wants to experience what he may see in there. Of course all the Nerve Gear were pulled from the shelves.” He hesitated for a moment, “Trying to understand her sibling has merit though and we are working on a successor model. So why not solve our need for Beta testers by providing them with prototype AmuSphere?"  
  
Moments of contemplative silence stretched out endlessly before his father responded, "I don't have much of a problem with giving out a handful of AmuSphere, but do you really think that this will allow us to fill the quota for debugging?"  
  
"Yes, even a couple of amateur players should help a lot in finding problems. If we extend the offer to the other victims' families we should get a substantial number for the job."  
  
"I see." trailing off in moment of thought before his father added, "And if we do it right we can even boost our reputation while doing something good for people in a bad situation. I'll write up a statement to give the offer. In the meantime I want you to plan out the specifics of the arrangement and bring them up tomorrow for us to go over."  


* * *

  
“Ma?”  
  
“Yes Sugu?” her mother looked at her over her mug of coffee, “What is it?”  
  
“…Would you be angry if I said I wanted to play a game like Sword Art Online?” she gave her mother a scared look.  
  
“You mean you want to play a VR game,” Kirigaya Midori put her coffee mug down next to her dinner plate and gave her daughter all her attention.  
  
Sugu nodded.  
  
“…I can’t say that I Blame you,” Midori sighed, “He got his interest from me… I don’t see why not. Go ahead Sugu.”  
  
The girl gave her mother a huge smile.  
  
“However.”  
  
Sugu’s face fell, “What Ma?”  
  
“I want you to make sure that this thing is completely safe, Kazu is already trapped in Sword Art Online,” Midori reminded her, “I don’t want you falling into the same kind of trap, I don’t know what I’d do then.”  
  
Sugu sighed, that wasn’t as bad as she’d thought it would be, “Don’t worry Ma, I’ll ask about safety, I promise, and then we can go over what Kou says when I bring the console home.”  


* * *

  
“So, you want a couple of prototype AmuSphere for this girl and her friend?” his father asked, his chopsticks pausing halfway to his mouth.  
  
“Please?” Kou almost held his breath as he watched his father think, too nervous to touch his own plate just yet.  
  
Shouzou gave his son a searching look before nodding, “That is a very good idea,” he smiled, “I’ll acquire a few AmuSphere for you.” Matter settled completely, he ate the mouthful of rice he’d had gripped in his chopsticks.  
  
“Thanks dad,” Kou breathed, very pleased with himself. Reassured that he’d be able to deliver on his promise to Kirito’s sister, his own apatite reappeared and he dug into his own dinner with gusto.  


* * *

  
Sugu logged onto her brother’s computer, feeling like an interloper as she opened the internet browser that he preferred and opened the email function. She hadn’t figured out the e-mail on her phone yet, and it was charging anyway, so she couldn’t use that. And her computer hadn’t been hooked up to the Wifi yet, so here she was in her brother’s room, using his computer.  
  
A short message later, making doubly sure that she’d spelled Kou’s email address properly, and she was in business.  


* * *

  
Setsuna sighed wearily, rubbing the back of her neck as she appeared in the Hikawa Shrine, “Evening girls,” she sat heavily at one end of the table, “How was patrol?”  
  
“Uneventful,” Minako, a girl with long, straight chestnut hair tied back with a big red bow (and hadn’t _that_ been surprising?) replied, letting herself slump on the table, “Thankfully. How about you, Ami?” Her hair had shifted color late September, 2007…  
  
Ami, a young woman with light blue hair looked up from her Mini Mercury Computer, “No Youma has gone after the SAO Victims since that attack last week. But it’s only a matter of time before they try again.”  
  
The sliding door opened and closed again, a young man collapsing beside the Intern. “Let’s hope they don’t try again, ever,” he growled.  
  
“Evening Mamoru, how was work?” Ami asked, not missing a beat.  
  
“Long,” he rested his head against the table, “I think the only good news I have is that Mio is still breathing. I am _not_ looking forward to Princess Serenity awakening.”  
  
“You’re still afraid she’ll pine for you?” Makoto, a brunette cooking student asked, setting a healthy number of snacks on the center of the table.  
  
“Yeah, don’t get me wrong, I still care about her. But, I’m not _in love_ with her anymore; it’s more like I’m her older brother now.” Mamoru grumbled, accepting the cup of coffee the girl handed him, “And on top of that, I still have a patrol of my own to do later…”  
  
“I think we’re all running on fumes, and have been for several years now,” Rei, the resident Miko and Sailor Mars mumbled around one of the snacks she’d picked up.  
  
“That reminds me,” Minako grimaced, “Tenou and Kaioh, they’re still hitting Jadeite’s storage right?”  
  
Setsuna sighed, “They are,” she confirmed, “Those favors of yours are drying up fast, Minako.”  
  
“Don’t I know it,” She growled, “I wish they’d be more careful!”  
  
“Speaking of the Princess,” Ami looked up from her surveillance of the hospitals where the Sword Art Online Victims were being kept, turning to Setsuna, “Can you confirm if she’ll appear soon?”  
  
Setsuna winced; she really had messed up hadn’t she? Sure, she could tell them what time of year she’d appear… but she was trying to ween the girls, to make them look for information themselves, “She will appear when the SAO Incident ends, I can’t say more than that.” If only they’d _take the hint_ …  
  
Ami nodded, “Alright.”  
  
Makoto handed Setsuna some coffee, “Our Princess isn’t going to be happy with Tenou and Kaioh is she?”  
  
“Most assuredly not,” Setsuna agreed, taking a sip and wincing at the Black coffee she’d been given. “Thank you, Makoto. I’m just glad that I’ve been able to keep the infighting to strong words…” It was all she could do to keep Uranus and Neptune pointed at Metalia and not the Senshi of the Inner System…  
  
Every single one of them had dark circles under their eyes.  


* * *

  
Kayaba Akihiko was headed to visit Kirito when a suspicious looking doctor walked out, his honed, but rusted, senses told him something was off. In their hand was a glowing cylinder, “Life Energy,” He breathed, his eyes narrowing. His hand snapped up, “Ek skýt tuttugu smár striða.” He spat, not at all surprised when several needles of wind struck the Youma’s turned back, destroying it before it could even react.  
  
He sighed in relief as he strolled over and bent down. Picking up the cylinder, he entered Kirito’s room. “As I thought, he’s been drained,” the boy was paler than was strictly healthy and his breathing was very shallow.  
  
“It’s a good thing this won’t affect him in game,” the man smiled, almost fondly. It had been this boy’s ability to keep his head when everyone else panicked that had led to him choosing this boy as his protégé, to be the new Commander of the Princess’s Royal Guard.  
  
Without a second thought, Kayaba broke the cylinder and Kirito’s color returned, his breathing deepening, as his energy was returned to him.  
  
He frowned as he thought about it, “One of the other hospitals was also attacked, perhaps I should move all the Clearers to the Hub soon…”  


* * *

  
Ami’s eyes narrowed, “It looks like one of the hospital’s been attacked!”  
  
Minako tensed, resisting the urge to groan as she reached for her pen. Makoto set down the tray she’d been holding, going for the pen on her purse. Rei groaned as she pulled her pen from behind her ear and Mamoru had frustrated tears in his eyes as he reached for the stupid rose he was forced to rely on. Setsuna’s knuckles were white around her own pen.  
  
Ami’s eyes narrowed as the alert disappeared almost as soon as it had appeared. “Never mind, it was a false alarm.”  
  
The four other Senshi and the Prince of Earth, all sighed in relief, slumping further into their seats.  
  
“You know,” Minako looked to each of them, “I’m surprised none of us have died yet…”  


* * *

  
Sugu and Nagata looked around Tokyo Mall, “You’re sure this is where we’re supposed to meet Kou?” the boy asked his friend.  
  
She nodded, “This is where he said to meet him.”  


* * *

  
Minako sighed as she gazed at her pen, “Setsuna?”  
  
“Yes?” she looked over.  
  
“I need to go meet with the chief of police in the morning, something to do with Uranus and Neptune… I think.” The brunette looked up at the Senshi of Pluto, “Personally I’d rather be sleeping, but someone has to keep in contact with them. It might as well be me.”  
  
Setsuna nodded, “In the meantime, you should take a nap.”  


* * *

  
Sailor Venus took her mask off and pinched the bridge of her nose, “And the entire block is rubble, you said?”  
  
The Tokyo Chief of Police nodded, giving her a stern look, “I know you are the darling of Europe, but if you can’t get them to shape up and fast…”  
  
“No, no, I understand, it’s ok.” Venus replied, internally gnashing her teeth. Another favor that they might need later, gone. Just like that. “The problem is, is that I can’t control them. None of us can dissuade them when they get an idea in their heads. I promise you I will try however.”  
  
“I suppose that is the best I could hope for,” the Chief gave a snort of disgust; “They should have more discipline, especially since they seem to be older than you are.”  
  
“Oh, believe me, the rest of us agree with you.” Venus hung her head, “I’ll say something the next time they attend a meeting.”  
  
The Chief stared into her face, “You need to go home and get some sleep Ma’am. And, if it’s any consolation, it’s been a pleasure serving with you and the other Inner System Senshi.”  
  
Venus gave him a tired, but sincere smile of gratitude, “And it’s been our pleasure to serve.” She gave the older man a bow, and at the obvious dismissal, turned to leave.  


* * *

  
“You know, I can’t even work up the energy to be angry anymore.” Minako gave the two older women a tired glare, “I had to use yet another of my dwindling favors to get you both off the hook.”  
  
“We had no other choice,” Neptune used the well-worn excuse.  
  
“We know that,” Minako growled, “But what do you think this will look like to the civilians? We’ve asked you both time and again to be more careful!”  
  
She resisted the urge to lay her head on the table, “Because of you, my relationship with the police here in Tokyo has been eroding away. Setsuna has even said that our Princess will not put up with this!”  
  
“But we really didn’t have a choice this time,” Neptune’s eyes welled with tears, “The entire block of warehouses were full of Energy that was ready to be delivered!”  
  
Minako hissed, “Then it looks like Jadeite is getting bolder…”  
  
Uranus watched on silently, telling herself that there really was no choice, “We can only promise to be more thorough about looking through the places before destroying them, but we’ve only lasted this long because of this method.”  
  
“You keep saying that!” Minako snapped.  
  
“Minako, calm down,” Setsuna placed a hand on the First Senshi’s shoulder, “They are my responsibility, remember?”  
  
Tears were falling from Minako’s eyes, “I _know_ that. But _I’m_ our police contact!” She was falling apart, and she knew it.  


* * *

  
Kikuoka Seijiro walked into the Prime Minister’s office, As soon as the door clicked close behind him the minister gestured for him to speak, "Mr. Prime Minister, I must ask, are you sure about this? The Project has been getting nowhere. To authorize the next level at this point...”  
  
“What else would you have me do?” the Prime Minister asked, “Those girls are tired of fighting, and yet they keep going.”  
  
“And we have nothing to show for all the time past. Conventional weaponry has been all but ineffectual and we aren't even sure if heavy ones would work if we were willing to level half of downtown along with the monsters.” Seijiro grimaced. Admitting their own military forces impotence always left a bitter, sour taste in his mouth.  
  
“Those girls have been going at things that terrify professionals for years.” He turned to look at the man, “Even our most elite soldiers don't go without rest and recuperation, we don't know how much longer they can keep this up. Psychologically _and_ physiologically.”  
  
The Prime Minister gestured for Kikuoka to join him by the window, “The Minister of Defense is worried, so yes, unfortunately the Project _must_ go forward.”  


* * *

  
“How did you do it?” she asked.  
  
Kayaba looked up from where he was going over several reports, “Ah, you’re the mother of one of my [Beta Testers]”  
  
“How did you save his life?” she repeated.  
  
“You mean Coper’s?”  
  
She gave him a glare, “Quit stalling!” she almost snarled.  
  
Kayaba huffed, “I know I have to tell you something,” he waved a hand for her to sit, “Calm down. The Terrorists that the Senshi have been dealing with tried to highjack Sword Art Online.”  
  
“You mean…?” her confusion quickly cleared up.  
  
He nodded, “As such, while I know you want to know everything, I need to keep most of how I’ve been working to keep the Players under wraps.”  
  
She sent him a halfhearted glare, “But you can tell me _something_ , right?”  
  
Kayaba nodded, “I can, but not much. And, at the moment, I’m not even sure _what_ I _should_ say.”  


* * *

  
The moment the woman left, he set aside the reports he’d been going through. Sighing, he got up from his seat and went to the window, “Sword Art Online is finished, as is the Nervegear. That magic… I recognize that magic on all the NerveGear…” what was that man’s name again?  


* * *

  
In the Hibernation pod, the young elf turned slightly before settling back into her millennia long slumber. Her peaceful face scrunching for a few short moments before smoothing out again.


	9. Heroes of Our Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More interaction with Elves, and someone seems to be cosplaying as Link from LoZ...

Asuna giggled as she raced down the beach, her partner close behind, “I think this is my second favorite floor so far.”  
  
“It was always mine,” strong arms swathed in black cloth wrapped around her waist and they went tumbling onto the sand, they rolled several times, finally coming to rest with Asuna on his chest, “I’ve always loved the beach and the sea, it’s so beautiful…” of course, the beach, the sea, there was no way either could hold a candle to the girl resting on his chest.  
  
She followed his gaze, “You’re right, it’s beautiful.” She sat up, “So, what are we going to do after we find Kizmel?”  
  
“Continue the [Elf Campaign], and then we’ll go questing on some of the different islands, they have some very interesting mobs.” He stretched, also sitting up, “You ready to go?”  
  
She nodded.  


* * *

  
Kizmel pulled down the book she’d been looking for, maybe this would help her protect her charges, and she loathed having to leave them both as tasks were finished. She thought back on her dream, not the one where she died, she’d not had that one for a while. But the one where she and her sister were put to sleep.  
  
“Captain, you promised that we wouldn’t sleep long,” she turned to look out the window, “How long have I been sleeping?”  


* * *

  
Asuna moaned quietly in distress as she curled deeper into her partner’s side. This wasn’t the first nightmare she’d ever had, but it was her first in Aincrad.  
  
They’d had a good day, Kirito had leveled twice, and so had she, but those mobs… Youma, they’d struck something deep in her mind.  
  
_Where are you leading me?_ She wondered as she ran after an older man, _Who are you? You aren’t Kirito-kun,_ she didn’t know what was going on.  
  
When she looked back, she saw a ballroom, and her closest friends being overwhelmed by them. Why was she running away? She had to help them. But then, why did she feel so helpless?  
  
When she looked back again…  
  
Asuna sat bolt upright in bed, breathing harshly.  
  
“Mmm, Asu-hime, what’s the matter?”  
  
She turned, “Oh, Kirito-kun…” had her voice just cracked?  
  
He sat up, yawning, “What’s wrong, did you have a nightmare?”  
  
“I, I think I might have,” she admitted, turning to look out the window, looking out over the sea but not seeing it, “I don’t remember what I was dreaming about anymore,” she mumbled, letting him pull her back, so that she was resting against his warm, solid chest.  
  
Even with no heartbeat, she found that his presence, the feel of him holding her brought an untold amount of comfort to her racing mind.  
  
He brushed her tears away gently, “I will never let you get hurt if I can prevent it, Asu-hime,” he promised.  


* * *

  
Malachite growled as he attacked yet another mob, why was this so hard? “It should not be this hard! Why can’t I access my magic?”  


* * *

  
There was a loud, high-pitched scream, which caused them to look in that direction with wide eyes.  
  
“We’d better go, they might need help,” she got up, reaching for her rapier.  
  
He nodded, “You’re right.” He pushed himself up, “Let’s go.”  
  
At the edge of the beach, among the trees, they found a girl being attacked by Orange Players. Their very appearance caused Kirito’s eyebrow twitch.  


* * *

  
She’d fallen, of all the stupid things she could have done, she’d tripped and fallen, allowing [Titan’s Hand] to catch up. The blonde with dark brown buttery speckled eyes glared up at the leader, “I will not give you anything!” she snarled, really, she didn’t know why this newly minted Orange Guild would come after her, she had nothing of value.  
  
The Redhead chuckled, “It’s your [Crystals] we want…”  
  
Dark brown eyes widened “Never! I’ll never give you my [Crystals]!” she snarled, she pulled her shield from its place on her back with her right hand, and the short sword from her hip with her left.  
  
The redhead just laughed at her victim’s resistance. But that didn’t last for long.  
  
At screams from behind, the redhead turned.  
  
Brown eyes widened.  
  
“You know, I thought I’d made this plain downstairs last night,” the voice was calm, cool, and sent a cold shiver down the redhead’s spine, “ _Player Killing, and really, any kind of Troll behavior will not be tolerated._ ”  
  
All of her minions had lost an arm. And there, in the center, was a teen all in black. “Your name, what is it?” he growled, eyes blazing as he glared coldly up at the Redhead.  
  
“R-Rosalia,” she spluttered, “But this is just a game, isn’t it?”  
  
“It stopped being a game the moment Kayaba told us that we die when our HP reaches zero.” The boy snarled.  
  
Dark brown eyes jerked, turning when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Brown eyes widened even more when they met soft amber, “Come on,” the other girl whispered, pulling Brown eyes to her feet, “Let’s go. My Partner will take care of her.”  
  
The blonde nodded, turning back to look at the boy, she noticed that the white symbol on his scarf seemed to be glowing before she followed his partner away from the guild.  


* * *

  
“It looked like you needed the help,” Amber said in a soft tone, “I’m Asuna, what’s your name?”  
  
“…Lux,” she replied, blushing.  
  
“Well, hopefully they won’t try anything again,” the boy from before walked into the clearing. His eyes went from Lux to his partner, “Is she alright Asu-hime?”  
  
“She appears to be perfectly fine, Kirito-kun.” Asuna replied with a smile.  
  
He nodded, turning those gold flecked eyes, not much different than Lux’s own, on her, “Your name?”  
  
“Lux,” she replied more strongly, she bowed deeply in gratitude, “Thank you for saving me, I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t arrived.”  
  
The boy chuckled, “That’s no problem Lux, I’m Kirito; you’ve already met my partner, my [White Moon].”  
  
Asuna rolled her eyes, “If I’m a [White Moon] then that makes you a [Black Sun].” she snarked, pushing his shoulder, “More, you’re _my_ [Black Sun].”  
  
He blushed, “Asu-hime…”  
  
Lux could barely contain her giggles when she noticed a Party Invitation open in front of her.  


* * *

  
“So, what are we doing then?” Lux asked as she followed her two saviors back onto the beach.  
  
“Kirito-kun and I were in the middle of finding a quest to do,” Asuna replied, turning to look at their new Party member. “There were one or two around here, weren’t there?” she turned bemused eyes onto her partner.  
  
He had been silent for the last minute or so.  


* * *

  
Kou checked his bag one last time as he got off the train. The two Prototype AmuSphere were still there, and then he glanced at his watch, “Great, new project with experimental testing venture and meeting next of kin to SAO victim about it and I’m already running late,” he muttered unhappily, checking that he had two copies of the Beta ALfheim Online to go with the AmuSphere were also still there.  
  
He should have been at the mall nearly five minutes ago!  
  
When the train came to a stop, he ran all the way from the Station to the mall and a little Maid Café out front, where his new friends were waiting. Having slid into his seat after exchanging greetings he eagerly got to it, “Sorry I’m late, it took longer to get these checked out than I thought it would.” He opened his bag and pulled out the two boxes, “Now, This is called the AmuSphere, it is designed as a safe alternative to the NerveGear.”  
  
“How so?” Sugu asked, taking one of the boxes curiously.  
  
“For one, there isn’t a battery,” Kou replied, “And the settings for the microwaves can’t be adjusted. On top of that there are a whole bunch of other safety measures, like a fireproof lining so that even if something goes wrong you can’t catch fire. One the most important safety features is that the power emitting parts are designed to fail before they can become dangerous to the user. Think of it like a permanent circuit breaker. Shame that it breaks the device though...."  
  
The only girl nodded as she turned the AmuSphere’s box over, “That should convince Ma that it is safe... What else does it do?”  
  
Kou’s grin widened, “Well, the AmuSphere is supposed to be able to monitor a Player’s vital signs, so if your heartrate goes too high or if you get dehydrated from playing too long, it will automatically log you out then as well.” He was getting really excited, “At the same time the device doesn’t cut you off entirely from the real world, so if something happens you’ll notice with your senses and know that you need to check something on the outside.”  
  
Carefully, Sugu opened the box, revealing a visor-like console that looked like it would fit snuggly around her head comfortably. “Hey, this looks cooler than the NerveGear!”  


* * *

  
It was that dream again, he could only guess who the adult was, but he never felt safer than when he had this dream.  
  
_“Are you ready for another lesson, Little Brother?”_ the voice was deep, and he could have sworn that he’d heard it again just recently, _“Knowing this language will come in handy when you get older.”_  
  
_“Yes Big Brother,”_ he answered, as always, carefully pronouncing the words slowly in that strange language. It sounded so pretty, listening to his brother speak, teaching him words and songs, lullabies.  
  
The shifting of the bed and quiet groans woke him from the rather pleasant dream he hadn’t had in years. Opening his eyes, he was met with the sight of his partner in the throes of another nightmare.  
  
He pulled her closer, wishing he had a heartbeat for her to listen to, and began to hum. His older brother had once warned him to never speak several phrases unless he had absolute conviction, and that the _Language_ was important.  
  
The vibrations of his chest must have calmed his partner, she’d stopped moving.  


* * *

  
She didn’t wake up as her nightmare faded, but she could hear a familiar tune as she swam into wakefulness. It was one that she hadn’t heard in, she wasn’t sure how long.  
  
She opened her eyes slightly and was actually surprised that the sound was coming from her Partner and not the [BGM]. Where had he learned that?  
  
He stopped when he noticed she was awake, “Are you alright now, Asu-hime?”  
  
“You didn’t have to stop you know, Kirito-kun,” she replied, “Where did you learn that?”  
  
He blinked, “It’s something I learned a long time ago.”  
  
“Oh, it seems very familiar is all. But I swear I’ve never heard it before now…”  


* * *

  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed as he studied the map in front of him, the Treasure Quest had brought him, Lux and his partner Asuna to this wrecked ship. He couldn’t _see_ anything that had changed, but he just had this feeling…  
  
“Kirito-kun, what are we looking for again?” Asuna asked, looking out over the ruined ship.  
  
“One of the [Missing Princess’s] treasures,” he replied, “If I remember right it was a Music Box in the [Beta].”  
  
“Could, could it have changed, Kirito-sama?” Lux enquired hesitantly.  
  
He winced, not liking that other Players had started deferring to him at all. And he wasn’t at all used to it either. He certainly didn’t want his friends doing it, even in jest. “Please don’t call me that, Lux.”  
  
The blonde blinked in surprise, had she really said that out loud? Oops, she hadn’t meant to. “Sorry, I won’t do it again.” She promised.  
  
Kirito gave the other girl a closer look, “Are you sure you’re alright Lux, facing other players is something else...”  
  
The blonde gave him a weak smile and nodded.  
  
Asuna giggled, “So you’re Kirito- _sama_ now are you, Kirito-kun?” she nudged his shoulder.  
  
“Must you insist on this, my [White Moon _Princess_ ]?” he set her a playful glare.  
  
The chestnut haired girl huffed, “As if you’re any different, my [ _Black Sun_ ].”  
  
Lux’s eyes widened her mouth twitching as she tried not to smile, White Moon Princess? Well, it certainly fit Asuna to a ‘T’…  


* * *

  
Persephone heaved another sigh, trudging through the shopping district to restock her healing potions that have been running low. Musing how things changed.  
  
While being normal was nice, she’d been feeling… off. Since almost the beginning. She still wasn’t used to not being able to heal people. And while she hadn’t had friends before this game began, she found herself wishing that she could still tap into her healing powers. Especially during the few boss battles she’d been in. “I don’t want any of my friends to die…” The game giving her more freedom than she ever had, and more to lose while bereft of her one great ability. So frustrating!  
  
[Ding]  
  
Persephone’s eyes widened as something popped up in her [H.U.D], “What’s this?” grasping and expanding the icon into full text: “[Crystal Conception Quest]?”  
  
Crystal sounds like a quest reward, one very valuable reward. Maybe this quest could help to keep them safe… or lead her to something that she can use to do so.  
  
Window already open to request info from a certain [Rat] she carried on to get those potions. Possible protection being all the more reason to not chance anything.  


* * *

  
This place was familiar; there was this insistent niggling in the back of her mind. She sighed, lifting her flagon of wine. Wine that she couldn’t remember the name of, and took a sip. “Aincrad is slowly driving me crazy,” Beryl muttered as she looked over the bar she was currently sitting in on the Sixth Floor.  
  
“Argo is late,” she muttered tiredly, letting her head fall against the countertop.  
  
“Are you alright?”  
  
Her head shot up and she turned, to see a tall man with long, steel grey hair pulled back into a low horsetail and red armor. Her pupils dilated, back going ramrod straight, as she finally put the pieces together. “…Captain Heathcliff,” she nearly growled, “This all here, SAO, _isn't_ only a fantasy. And neither is your name a coincidence is it?” The end was more of a statement of fact than a question.  
  
“…Lady Beryl, I wasn’t expecting you to get caught up in this,” he rumbled softly, his eyes seemed… sad, but she could not fathom why. “What do you think SAO is?”  
  
Her memories became clearer as all the pieces started falling into place, “…this [Quest], you’re trying to teach Kirito the history of the Empire, aren’t you?” she asked, “The [Rainbow Crystals]… all of it. Making people use skills of a long gone empire to fight monsters. What is the point? It is not like that does anything… No way, you managed to create a [Sim] out of a game to teach the use of magic?”  
  
He gave her a hint of a smile.  
  
“Wait!” she sat even straighter, “Then. That means…?” But then, _why_ …?  
  
He nodded, “I have no idea if _my dear Princess_ ,” he put careful emphasis on the last word, “Was also caught. While I hoped for the game to attract her originally, now part of me hopes that she wasn’t.”  
  
She remembered those old rumors, “You were really close to her mother…”  
  
He gave her a noncommittal smirk, “On the off chance that she is here, I hope to be able to train her myself. I am looking for Players to help me rebuild the Royal Guard.”  
  
“And you want my help?” her green eyes narrowed, “…Let me think about it.”  
  
“Alright.”  


* * *

  
Cardinal looked up when she heard a soft but heavy ‘thump’ she smiled, “Long day Master?”  
  
“Much too long,” he agreed, sighing. “And it’s nowhere near over yet…”  


* * *

  
Mizuno Saeko closed the door silently behind her and took the seat next to the bed, “I’ve been so busy, I just haven’t had the time to visit you, I’m sorry.”  
  
The girl with short dark hair didn’t move, but it wasn’t as if Saeko had expected her too. “I’m just glad your equipment hasn’t started melting again yet; that gave us quite the scare.”  
  
“Actually, we are still trying to figure out why the equipment in this room started melting in the first place,” the woman looked confused, “Could something have overheated?” They’d been sent away for testing, and as far as Saeko had heard, it was stumping the technicians testing the equipment too.  


* * *

  
“Ok, we are looking for a small silver box,” Kirito told them as they approached the shipwreck.  
  
“…Are you sure that’s a _ship_ Kirito-kun?” Asuna asked, “That doesn’t look like a seafaring ship to me…”  
  
Lux’s eyes widened as she took a closer look, “Asuna-sama is right,” she breathed, “It looks more like a _space_ ship…”  
  
This time Asuna froze and Kirito smirked, “So my Hime is finally getting the recognition she deserves…”  
  
“Just for that I should _make you wear those pink gloves_ you showed me before Christmas,” she growled, glaring up at her Partner heatedly.  
  
Kirito blushed brightly and laughed awkwardly, “Asu-hime, you know I was just joking…” he mumbled; he thought he could feel that phantom of his heart in his chest, hammering against his ribs, it felt like they might break it was going so hard, so fast.  
  
“I swear, how can she be so angry and yet be the most _beautiful sight in the game_?” he wondered, his whole face heating up.  
  
Lux took a moment to look between her saviors. She could see that there was something between them, the way Asuna’s smile brightened when she teased Kirito, the way Kirito’s smile became just that more _real_ and how his eyes softened when Asuna’s back was turned. It was so easy to want that… She vowed silently right there, that she’d help them as best she could.  
  
Besides, she could see _exactly_ what Kirito saw when he looked at his Partner. She was pretty, held herself with the kind of grace that could usually only be seen in royalty and was so very strong. “She really is a [White Moon Princess], [Commander],” she smiled when he looked back at her.  
  
He sighed in defeat, “Why does everyone insist on calling me that, or a variation?”  
  
“Maybe because you are a tested [Leader],” Lux put a hand on one of his shoulders, “Everyone’s heard about the _Twelve Man Raid_ you led successfully by now, with _no fatalities_. We all think you are amazing for pulling that off.”  
  
Kirito stared after her as she jogged ahead to catch up to his partner. “But… I’m not…” he mumbled. He couldn’t be what they thought he was.  


* * *

  
The Man in the Black Poncho growled as he watched the three in disdain. That boy was nothing, and one day he would show them all.  


* * *

  
The three of them were rummaging through the wrecked ship (having just entered the main hold,) when Kirito turned, pulling [Dark Sun] from its sheath on his back. His eyes widened when he saw who it was stepping out of the shadows, “Kizmel, what are you doing here?”  
  
The Elf chuckled, “I was looking for you and Asuna actually.” She gave him a toothy grin.  
  
“A-ha! I think I…” Asuna blinked as she stood up, something clutched in her hands, “…Kizmel?”  
  
“Hello Asuna,” the elf beamed.  
  
The chestnut haired girl shoved the item she’d found into her Inventory and a moment later she’d thrown her arms around the [Dark Elf] in greeting, “We missed you,” she breathed.  
  
“I know,” the elf sighed shortly, running careful fingers through the girl’s hair like she would have for her own sister Tilnel. It was a gesture that she’d only ever made for her sister, and for her charge, the young Moon Princess. “I hate having to leave you both after the [Tasks] on each Floor are finished…”  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed. That organic speech pattern, referencing game mechanics, the way she was definitely breaking the narrative... There was no way that Kizmel was an NPC. But then what was she? Did they break her programming somehow when they’d saved her life, was it a bug, a feature one of the Devs added after the [Beta] was over, or was she actually a real person...?  
  
He looked down at the notification that told him that Kizmel had joined the Party and decided that it really wasn’t all that important (for the moment), and put it from his mind, “We are quite pleased to see you again.”  
  
“Ta, [Commander],” The Elf motioned for him to join them.  


* * *

  
He poked his partner, “You thought you’d found it?”  
  
She blushed, pulling out the little silvery box she’d picked up, “Is this it? It looks so familiar… as I’ve seen it before…” she trailed off.  
  
Kirito was the only one to notice Kizmel’s eyes widen, “That’s the Princess’s music box!”  
  
Kirito nodded, “What’s so special about it then?”  
  
Kizmel put a finger to her chin, “If I remember right, the Princess is the only one who can open it.”  
  
He nodded again, that was what he remembered from the [Beta], No one, not even he himself, had been able to open the box. “I wonder what music is in it…”  
  
Asuna looked up, “So this thing can’t be opened then?” she sounded quite disappointed.  
  
Kizmel shook her head, “That I know of anyway, I think it might be DNA Locked to the Princess’s line.”  
  
“Asuna, can you check the Item Description?” he asked, turning his eyes to his partner.  
  
Asuna nodded, motioning for him and Lux to come closer, and tapped the box. They were all surprised when a really large information box opened. Her eyes widened as she read the text to herself. Something about this, like the [Dark Elf] watching them, the [Rainbow Crystals] they’d found on the Fifth Floor and the Youma Mobs, all of it was so stupidly familiar that it was starting to make her _very uncomfortable_. “K-Kirito-kun, I-I need to keep this,” she mumbled after reading it, stuffing the box back into her inventory.  
  
“Another feeling like with the [Rainbow Crystals]?” he asked, putting an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close, where she fit just right, like a missing puzzle piece falling into place resting comfortably against his side.  
  
She nodded, shivering. She leaned into him heavily as a feeling of hypothermia inducing cold slipped down her back at a snail’s pace. It was so cold and yet, somehow pleasant. Though, that feeling might just be because Kirito was holding her.  


* * *

  
Neptune sighed, wiping her brow free of sweat as she finished inspecting the last of the warehouses. “Thank goodness it was only just that first one this time.” Still, checking each warehouse had taken a long time; longer than she or her partner were comfortable with, and no doubt they’d have to do this again in a few weeks. “I’d be despairing right now if there were anymore…”  
  
Uranus huffed as she returned to her partner’s side, “Those girls, why aren’t they willing to do what needs to be done? If they were out here helping us clean up there wouldn’t be near this many warehouses to take out. We’d have won already if Pluto and Venus would just let us take the fight to that bitch Beryl!” She looked quite unhappy at being ordered around by Sailor Venus.  
  
Neptune blew out a breath, “I know, it’s frustrating, but Pluto says we have to wait for the Princess to show herself…” she reminded the blonde, patting her on the shoulder. Neptune might agree with her partner, but even she was starting to get tired of Uranus’s increasingly frequent tirades.  
  
“That brat probably won’t have the spine or the stomach needed to make the hard decisions and you know it Neptune!” Uranus barely kept herself from biting back.  


* * *

  
Sugu waved goodbye to Kou, “It’s time for me to get home.”  
  
“Good luck,” Kou smiled, “And be careful, you never know when a Youma will pop up…”  
  
She gave a nod, “I should be fine, …If you want to escort me home though, I wouldn’t say no…”  


* * *

  
She shivered violently as she blew on her fingers, trying to warm them. She did her best to watch the game, their parents more than anyone else, over her sister’s shoulder. Chestnut-violet hair fell into her now pinkish amber eyes, she was much shorter than she had been in the beginning, her clothes were now pooling around her body. She’d been so focused on changing her appearance that she’d forgotten about her clothes.  
  
Her once enormous breasts were now barely there, and her armor had to look ridiculous, but she didn’t care. Her clothes at least gave her the illusion that if she pulled the draping fabric close she might be able to warm herself up. Her hair now trailed behind her in a long train.  
  
Her older sister went staticky again. She wished she could help her sister. She wished she could just get out. But the restrictions on her were worse than the ones on her sister and she didn’t know why.  
  
How long would it be before they escaped this cold, dark, awful place?  


* * *

  
Yui curled up into a fetal position; she could barely remember anything now. She wasn’t sure what to do. But, something. _Something_ compelled her to keep watching those two players. They were… happy?  


* * *

  
Kizmel had led them out of the wreck, “By the way, [Commander], who is your third companion?”  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, since Kizmel couldn’t see him, “This is Lux; we saved her from some _Orange Players_ earlier.”  
  
Asuna’s hand tightened around his, “I hate that type of Player!” she hissed, “They don’t believe Kayaba was telling the truth that this game could _kill us_ , but there is also no evidence to the contrary either! _It’s such despicable behavior_ , I don’t think I can say that I hate them enough…” she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to banish the dread, the almost paralyzing terror of that happening to the new friends she’d made, to _Kirito_ , but still a few tears managed to squeeze passed her eyelids and down her cheeks.  
  
He squeezed her hand, “I don’t like it either, especially because I was the first known target…” he growled.  
  
Kizmel turned to look at them, “And you’re sure that this will kill people?”  
  
Lux grimaced, “Those Players, they were after my [Crystals].”  
  
“They shouldn’t be trying to steal anything,” Asuna snarled, her eyes flashing in anger. She pulled out her [Crystals], “We depend on these to get us out of a fight that we can’t handle, if we don’t have any then we’ll, we’ll…” the Crystals fell from her shaking hands she was so angry.  
  
Kirito caught the dropped [Crystals] carefully placing them in his [Quick Menu Pouch] to give them back later. “Asuna,” he almost flinched when she turned those gloriously gorgeous angry eyes on him, “We understand. And even more, I think we all agree. Now, take a deep breath and calm down, because no matter how pretty you are when you’re angry, you’re still going to make mistakes.”  
  
He pulled her into a calming embrace, “And I don’t want my partner to be making mistakes.”  
  
Asuna’s eyes widened and her face went bright red. Carefully, she hid her face in his chest. He, he thought she was pretty? Why did that knowledge make her so happy?  


* * *

  
Kizmel hid her smile behind a hand, she was enjoying watching the [Commander] and his student, no; she was his [Partner] more than she was his student. Watching their relationship evolve was a real treat. “We still have a ways to go to get to the encampment, if you’ll follow me…”  
  
The [Commander] nodded, “Lead the way Kizmel.”  
  
Sand crunched under their shoes as Asuna eyed the edge of the water, “What are those mobs, lying on the beach?”  
  
The [Commander] turned, following his partner’s gaze, “Those are [Elph Lions], they’re modeled after Elephant Seals, and unless there’s an [Alpha Lion] that gets agitated they are pretty peaceful. If we give them a wide berth we should be able to make it passed them with no real need to fight.”  
  
“And what happens when an [Alpha Lion] gets agitated?” Lux asked after a moment of hesitation, unable to stop herself.  
  
“Then you’ll have to fight the entire colony,” he grimaced, “And that can be absolutely terrifying, especially if you’re playing Solo and there’s no one nearby. They have a lot of HP and their Defense is also kind of high. That makes taking just one hard enough…”  
  
The elf couldn’t keep her smile off her face as she turned around to lead them along the coast.  
  
No one notice the sand starting to shift.  
  
“Um,” Lux twiddled her fingers nervously, “Is anyone else starting to get the feeling that we’re being watched?”  
  
“It’s not just you Lux, but I doubt it’s other Players,” the [Commander] looked back at her. His eyes widening as the sand behind her began to rise in a way that was just unnatural. “Lux, come here.”  
  
“Huh?” she blinked, not moving.  
  
“Come here Lux,” he repeated, the faint glowing of the moon of his scarf getting brighter, “NOW!” His arm dropped from his Partner’s shoulder, his right hand going for the sword on his back.  
  
Lux’s eyes widened as she scrambled out of his way. Following the line of his sight, she went for her dagger and shield, “What is that?”  
  
“We’ll have to wait and see,” he growled, changing to a two-handed grip to add power to his swings.  
  
Lux swallowed, her grip on her dagger tightening.  
  
“Kirito-kun, let me.”  
  
He blinked as his Partner walked passed him, “Asu-hime…”  
  
“I’m calmer, but still very angry, _I need to kill something_. And this mob will do perfectly.” her eyes narrowed, bringing her rapier back in preparation for a [Sword Skill] as the sand finally gave way, revealing…  
  
“That wasn’t in the [Beta]!” The crustacean was huge easily towering over the three humans and single elf, but it wasn’t something Kirito recognized right away.  
  
In fact, it didn’t look like anything he might have seen in a movie, game or in a book. It looked like something that was more likely to be found in a museum. “That looks Prehistoric,” he rumbled, his eyes wide as he started to slowly back away. “And it’s new, which means that I don’t know what its patterns will be.” The shadow it cast fell on them as it rose to its not inconsiderable full height, sand cascading down its sides like twin waterfalls; its tail curling over its back in a way that was strangely familiar to them all.  
  
“I don’t care at the moment,” his partner snarled back, “If you’re so worried, then just stand back and let me handle it!”  
  
“Besides, you got to handle those Bandits, Kirito-kun…” she sent him an almost blood thirsty smirk over her shoulder.  
  
“Alright,” he conceded, “Just be careful.”  
  
"Of course, as if I wouldn’t be,” she muttered, turning back to the strangely familiar Mob. “…I don’t believe it, it’s a Sea Scorpion…” she finally recognized it from the curving of the tail, with the barb at the very tip.  
  
“Not just any either,” Kizmel called from behind Kirito, “it’s one of the species from Titan. They get particularly huge.”  
  
“Get ready,” he called, his grip tightening on his [Dark Sun], “Here it comes!”  
  
The [Titan Scorpion] hissed, its claws snapping, with loud clicks as it advanced.  
  
Asuna’s grip tightened as the [Linear] she’d been charging finished, and let it carry her to her target, evading its huge pincers, leaping from one to the other, with luck, she’d be right about its weakness. It gave a loud scream as she got it in the eye, a lucky shot, because that was its only weak point.  
  
“Yes, I was right!” she grinned savagely as she leaped back in retreat, dodging the claws with the ease of a grace she’d never known she’d had.  
  
She could feel Kirito’s eyes following her every move, could almost hear his heartrate doubling each time she had to dodge one or both claws. Slowly, she was chipping down its HP.  
  
Kizmel turned, “[Commander]…”  
  
“Not now Kizmel,” Kirito couldn’t tear his eyes from his partner’s blurred form, memorizing the [Titan Scorpion’s] attack patterns to send to Argo later.  
  
His eyes widened, pupils dilating as he heard another roar, it was nothing like the menacing hiss of the [Scorpion] and abruptly, he turned, coming face-to-chest with an [Alpha Lion], “Damn…” he brought his sword up to block its first attack, his feet sliding back through the sand since there was no traction at all; even after he’d dug his heels in, “the [Scorpion’s] scream must have disturbed the seals!”  
  
That they were closer to the dunes than the water did them no favors he knew, the water made the sand more compact, firmer, so it was easier to fight on. Here in the dunes, their mobility was going to be very low.  
  
Finally, he managed to disengage from the [Alpha Lion] to look around. Already, the other [Elph Lions] were closing in; Lux and Kizmel were close enough to help his partner if she needed it. Still, he’d have to keep an eye on the [Scorpion] Argo would need the information.  
  
“Lux, Kizmel,” he called, his voice stronger than he thought it really should be, “Aid Asuna if she needs it, I’ll handle the [Lions].”  
  
“But [Commander], you’ll be swamped!” Lux protested, clearly torn, “Surely the best way to deal with the situation is for one of us to help you while the other helps Asuna-sama.”  
  
“That’s an _order_ , Lux,” he snapped, “Besides, I’m a [Beta Tester] I know how these things move and fight. I have a higher chance of surviving on my own than you do.”  
  
He sent her a glare that told her to get to work.  
  
Feeling like she’d just been reprimanded, _and having no idea why_ , Lux turned back to watch Asuna’s fight, “Yes, sir.”  


* * *

  
Kirito growled as he pushed off the sand, cursing as his lunge went much slower than he wanted it too, his feet had dug into the flowing sand much too deeply “I hate sand,” he cursed, “It gets everywhere… not to mention it slows a person down way too much…”  
  
But he didn’t dare try going closer to the water, while that would improve his maneuverability, it would also take him away from his partner, and help, should he need it.  
  
And while the [Scorpion] might have been a surprise, he was pretty sure he remembered exactly how the [Elph Lions] moved and attacked, “Here’s hoping that the Devs didn’t change anything, or I’m about to be in a lot of hot water…” he grumbled, his grip tightening more than he knew it should on the hilt of his blade.  
  
From what he remembered, a [Colony of Elph Lions] were five to seven strong. And though their HP and Defense were high, they all moved rather slowly on land. On the compact sand near the water it would be easy enough to outrun them if they had too… but the [Elph Lion] also hit _very hard_.  
  
Kirito took a peek at his HP and winced, several more hits like that one and he’d be done for. “Lost more HP than I wanted to there, could their levels have been adjusted?” He ducked under an attack that came from behind and jumped clear. Or, he tried, damned sand…  
  
He took a closer look at his HP, “…Huh, It didn’t hit any harder than it did in the [Beta]…” So then, why were his instincts screaming at him that something had changed?  
  
Out of habit more than anything else, he did a mental head count: seven. Seven [Elph Lions]. That wasn’t wrong, so why? Unless… he dared to take his eyes off the mobs he was facing for a few brief moments to check on his Partner and their Party members. Kizmel and Lux were both just fine, and Asuna was taking chunks out of the new mob’s HP little by little.  
  
The [Scorpion] was a Tank like the [Elph Lions] then; that was useful information.  
  
Suddenly, he was forced to duck, rolling to the side, farther away from his party and closer to the water, “Damn, shouldn’t have taken my eyes off them,” he reprimanded himself as he came out of the roll, kneeling. The sand he was on was still much too loose to put on a good burst of speed to surprise them, and he wasn’t strong enough to take out very large chunks of their HP without the help of momentum through speed.  
  
In the [Beta], when he was still going Solo most of the time, he’d picked them off one by one, being careful to not disturb the [Alpha Lion] before he’d killed the rest of the mobs first.  
  
But he couldn’t do that here, they’d already [Swarmed] because the [Scorpion] had Aggroed them. Perhaps the best thing would be to play ‘keep away’ until Asuna was done? But four against seven was still very bad odds. And since Kizmel was an NPC…  
  
“…I hate escort missions…” he groaned as he stood, carefully choosing his first target.  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, he noted Lux jumping in and tanking a hit with her shield when his partner froze after the use of one of her [Sword Skills].  


* * *

  
“Thanks Lux,” Asuna called as she dashed passed the other girl, “The eyes seem to be the weak point, Kizmel, can you and Lux keep its pincers occupied?”  
  
“Are you sure,” Kizmel called, “you look like you need to rest for a bit.”  
  
Asuna grit her teeth, almost snarling, “No, Kizmel, I’ve got this,” she replied, “If I do this properly, I think I can take it out in just one more hit.”  
  
“If you’re sure, Asuna-sama,” Lux looked to the older girl from where she was under one of the pincers, holding it in place. She grit her teeth at the effort it took to keep the thing from getting passed her. It certainly didn’t help that she was just level twenty. So it really wasn’t a surprise that her voice sounded strained.  
  
Kizmel looked like she was going to regret something, “What is your plan?”  
  
Asuna gave her a wicked grin, “If I were to say, jump on its back and run up its tail and nail it in the eye with my rapier after a fall, would that be enough to kill this thing?”  
  
Kizmel blanched, remembering _someone else_ trying to do something similar before Captain Heathcliff put a stop to it. “I don’t see why it wouldn’t,” she replied slowly. Why did this girl have to be as _crazy_ as Princess Serenity used to be? “But I’m not sure that’s a good idea, that is a very long fall, and this one is nearly full grown. You could die from the fall if you miscalculate even _one_ variable!”  
  
“No, I _know_ I can do it!” Asuna growled back.  
  
Kizmel bit her lip before sighing, “It’s times like this that I wish I’d taken up learning the mace as well as the sword,” she rubbed her face with a hand, “With how heavily armored one of these things are, Lux and I can’t do any damage.”  
  
“ _I’ve noticed that!_ ” Lux growled, putting a little more effort and weight behind her shield.  
  
“I _just know_ I’m going to regret this somehow,” Kizmel muttered to herself, “Ok, what do you need me to do?”  
  
Asuna gave her a sunny smile, “Give me a boost.”  
  
Kizmel let out a long suffering sigh, kneeling; she cupped her hands together, “Ready when you are.”  
  
Asuna looked back as she took several careful steps backwards, within moments; she shot forward, planting a foot firmly in Kizmel’s cupped hands.  
  
Using all of her strength, Kizmel launched her into the air, before leaping forward herself to keep the second claw occupied.  


* * *

  
Asuna curled into a ball and flipped several times, going up, passed the mouth, passed the pincers. Soon she was even higher than the mob’s back. Hopefully, with Kizmel and Lux keeping the claws busy, all she would need to worry about was the tail.  
  
Now, with something nice and solid under her feet, she’d have no trouble getting up to her usual speeds. Resisting the urge to look down and check on Lux and Kizmel, she kept her eyes on the stinger, “Maybe I didn’t think this through enough,” she muttered to herself when she realized just how big the stinger itself was. It was longer than she was tall!  
  
She took a few deep breaths while trying not to think about getting impaled on that needle. She stepped to the side as it came down, moving just out of range, “So much for this being easy,” she knelt slightly and in a blur, she was gone from the head.  
  
She had to time this right, and she’d only get one shot. “One half of the mass times the velocity squared equals Force,” she muttered as she forced her legs to go faster, “The higher the velocity the more force there is. Which means, lots of momentum will equal _ouch_.”  
  
She reached the base of the needle and launched herself downward, towards the [Scorpion’s] eye, readying another [Linear] as she fell. She gave a loud battle cry as she thrust her rapier into the mob’s weak point and not a moment later, it burst into fractals of light underneath her.  
  
She looked up as she fell, trying to find Kirito in the crowd of mobs. There were nine, how many had he managed to kill?  
  
And how had he managed to get so close to the water’s edge? How had he gotten so far away? Her wide eyes didn’t leave his form, even as she fell into Kizmel’s arms. She could not see Kirito any more, but she knew exactly where he was.  
  
As soon as Kizmel put her down, she was off again, cursing the loose sand. Because of the sand she was going much more slowly than she wanted, _needed_ too.  
  
There was too little traction, but it got better with each step, before, she hadn’t been able to see her partner at all, now she could see the speck of black in the sea of browns and dark greys that was his hair and [Cloak of Midnight].  
  
Behind her, she could hear the shattering of mobs as Lux and Kizmel double teamed them. Before her, between herself and her partner, there was one with Health in the red, one hard thrust would kill it, and then nothing would get between her and her Partner _again_.  
  
Asuna gave a loud, sharp battle cry as she fell on the [Elph Lion], going through it so fast that it had barely shattered before she was sailing over her partner’s downed form, striking the [Alpha Lion].  
  
Taking advantage of the moment, her partner rolled back to his feet, brought his sword up, his feet sliding just slightly farther apart. And then he was a blur of motion himself, with a cry of his own, and one last strike from them both, and the [Alpha Lion] exploded, shattering.  
  
He turned to her, his eyes wide, full of something she wasn’t sure she recognized.  
  
Slowly, her breathing calmed, but when she opened her mouth to berate him, what he did next left her speechless.  
  
Her eyes widened as she was pulled into his chest and held there, “Thank you, Asuna. Thank you.”  
  
She blinked, “…Kirito-kun?” What was that she could hear in his voice?  
  
He pulled back, “You had my back. Just what I have come to _expect_ from my _Partner_.”  
  
She blushed, “As if I wouldn’t,” she pushed on his shoulder lightly, her cheeks getting darker as she noticed that he had yet to look away from her eyes, “You should never have tried to take them all.” She scolded almost gently.  
  
“No, I should not have,” he agreed, his eyes softening just slightly, “There were far too many of them for me to take on, especially on my own.”  
  
He reached over and pushed some hair out of her eyes, “And I _would not_ have done it, had there been any other choice,” He pulled her against his chest again, partly to hide the blush developing on his face, “I am so glad that my partner is as strong as she is. You saved my life today,” he whispered in her ear.  
  
Then he was gone.  
  
Blinking for a moment, Asuna wasn’t sure she could believe her ears. Then her eyes narrowed, “Kirito-kun! Get back here!”  


* * *

  
He let her catch him a few minutes later, and her wide, surprised eyes made him chuckle. His arm slipped around her waist and held her close. He knew that Lux and Kizmel weren’t far away, but for the moment, he allowed himself the illusion that they were on their own once more.  
  
They hadn’t really been on their own since the Floor Boss, before the meeting actually. “We really need to do some questing on our own when we get the chance.” He just didn’t do well with people in general.  
  
Lux, Kizmel, the rest, they were all nice, but he preferred to be on his own most of the time, or with Asuna. No… being with Asuna was _better_ than being Solo.  
  
She nodded, “Yeah, questing with our friends is fun, but I’d rather it was just the two of us.” She gave him a concerned look, “They are our friends though, right?”  
  
“They are,” he agreed, “I just have a hard time even with smaller groups being around me all the time. I find it exhausting.”  
  
“Even me?”  
  
He didn’t like that tone in her voice, “Never you, you are the sole exception, _my Asu-hime_ ,” Kirito pulled her closer; “You know, I don’t think I’d be able to handle them as well as I do if I didn’t have you with me.”  
  
“Really?” she leaned into his side. That made her feel really special, _really happy_ , for some reason.  
  
“Yeah, I was starting to reach the end of my tolerance for crowds,” he trailed off, “And we aren’t done yet, I see [Forest Elves] not too far from here.”  
  
They were gathered around something on the beach that the Players couldn’t see. The elves had ropes and nets, and they looked like they were getting ready for something.  
  
She tensed, her hand going for her sword, “What are they doing here?”  
  
“They’re part of the next quest of the [Elf Campaign],” he replied, “If I remember right we get to chat with them about something, but I don’t know if that’s possible now, since Kizmel is with us.”  
  
“And since we might have broken the game, we don’t know if she should have been waiting in the village for us right?”  
  
“Right,” he agreed, resting his hand against the hilt of his sword. “So, that means we should be ready, in case they attack us.”  
  
As they got closer, one of the elves turned to them, ready to call out a greeting, however, once he saw Kizmel catching up to Kirito and Asuna, he went for his sword instead.  
  
Kirito had already stepped forward, bringing his sword up to meet the axe that would have come down on Asuna.  
  
There were four other Elves that came rushing in, weapons at the ready.  
  
Asuna ducked under his outstretched arm to pierce the [Forest Elf], then Kirito brought his sword down, ending the [Forest Elf].  
  
They jumped apart as a sword came down between them. He spun, bringing his sword full circle, batting the polearm out of the way as she darted in and put her sword through the Mob’s neck.  
  
“Two down,” he breathed.  
  
“Three to go, If Lux and Kizmel haven’t killed any,” she finished.  
  
“Then we should go help them,” he grinned.  
  
“Indeed we should,” she agreed.  
  
Together, they pushed off of the compacted sand towards the other members of their party. The moved to help Kizmel, because the [Forest Elves] had decided to double team her.  
  
She was down to half health when they arrived. The [Dark Elf] had been able to whittle down one of her opponents with considerable effort, and that’s the one Kirito and Asuna went for.  
  
Lux hadn’t been able to fight the [Forest Elf], she spent more time hiding behind her shield, tanking the hits, since she wasn’t really strong enough to fight one on her own yet.  
  
Seeing that there was no hope of winning, the last Elf fighting Kizmel pulled back, “Let’s go, we won’t succeed if we die here!”  
  
The other elf shouted an affirmative and both broke off, heading for the trees.  
  
“Can we cut them off?” Asuna asked as she raced after them, Kirito a step behind her.  
  
“Probably not, but we should still try,” He replied. “[Forest Elves] are much more dangerous if we run across them in a forest, they can come from anywhere.”  
  
“Indeed, we shouldn’t let them get away if we have the ability.” Kizmel panted  
  
But, by the time they made it to the tree line, both mobs were long gone. “Damn, and we have no map data…” Kirito sighed, “Kizmel, Lux, you alright?”  
  
Lux looked to the [Dark Elf], who nodded, “We’ll be fine [Commander],” the blonde reported.  
  
Kirito looked back to the trees, “Well, there’s no use staying here,” he turned, wrapping an arm around Asuna as he passed her, “Let’s get to the village already.”  


* * *

  
“There’s a [Cooking] Skill right?” his partner asked, “So we should get ingredients right, as drops?”  
  
The arm he had around her shoulder tightened, “Yes, there’s a ranking system for them.” He hadn’t let go of her since she’d saved his life, since she’d caught him in their ongoing game, over an hour ago. Other than the fighting, it still irked her that the elves had gotten away.  
  
Something about that just didn’t feel right!  
  
“How the heck does that work?” she gave him a confused look.  
  
“Ingredient ranks are from S to E, E being the easiest thing to cook, the lowest quality, and S being the highest quality there is,” he replied, “Like restaurant quality meat verses what you buy in the store.”  
  
He let himself fall into one of the chairs in the villa they’d been given by the water, “We haven’t checked our loot yet have we?”  
  
Asuna shook her head, “Nope.” She didn’t even mind that he still had a hand on her wrist.  
  
“Perhaps we should then,” he brought his menu up and fiddled with its visibility before going to check the items he’d picked up, “Oh hey, I got one of those bottles like you did, from one of the [Forest Elves] most likely.”  
  
“What skill are you going to put in it?” she grinned.  
  
“That would be telling,” he replied, putting it back in his Inventory, chuckling when he noticed her pout, “Don’t pout Princess.”  
  
“I thought I told you not to call me that,” she huffed, deliberately settling herself in his lap to look through her own loot.  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes as he watched her fiddle with thin air herself before her menu revealed itself to his eyes. They slowly went through their loot. “The [Elph Meat] is E rank, what a surprise,” he muttered.  
  
“Um, Kirito-kun, why is the [Scorpion Meat] B rank?” she pointed to her own menu.  
  
“B? This soon?” he asked, turning to look at the item, “Hmm… well, I can think of a reason…”  
  
“Oh?” she turned to look into his face, “What reason is that?”  
  
“Were you able to damage the armor?”  
  
She blinked; then shook her head slowly, “No, the only way to damage the mob was to get it in the eye.”  
  
“That explains it,” he sat back, “Ok, you know how meat and things like that can get bruised IRL and how when we get hurt our skin goes black and blue?”  
  
She nodded, then her eyes widened in understanding, “Bruising on meat and vegetables and fruit can down grade the quality. Are you saying that happens here too?”  
  
He nodded, “Because you didn’t damage the meat, the quality, “Rank” is higher.” His eyes returned to the [Scorpion Meat], “Say Asuna, are you getting hungry?”  
  
She giggled, “I doubt my cooking skill is high enough, besides, what would I prepare with it?”  
  
“Well then, let’s go find someone to teach you.” She yelped in surprise as he stood, scooping her into his arms and dashed out of the common room of the villa.  


* * *

  
Lux bit her lip as she looked at her [Skills], “I wasn’t good enough today…” what could she do about it? Could, _should_ she bother Kirito again? “Kirito-sama would gladly give pointers, right?” But last she’d seen him; he seemed to be on edge, tired, but of what?  
  
Her dagger had let her down, _again_. “…I think I need a longer weapon, but I don’t want to use a two handed sword or a lance…” She decided that she didn’t dare. Not today. Maybe tomorrow would be better.  


* * *

  
“Kirito-kun, put me down!” Asuna squeaked, as her partner carried her through the tiny elven village by the sea.  
  
“Nope,” he grinned, his eyes on the small inn he remembered watching the NPCs cook in. “Here we are,” he shouldered the door open before finally putting her down.  
  
In retaliation, she smacked the back of his head.  
  
“Asu-hime…” he grumbled, rubbing his head.  
  
She huffed, turning away from him, “What are we doing here?”  
  
“We are here so that you can learn to cook that wonderful B Rank [Scorpion Meat], without burning it.”  
  
She turned to glare at him, “I can cook!”  
  
“My dear,” he shook his head, unbelieving of the fact that his wonderful, _beautiful Partner_ could really be this dense, “ _My dear Asu-hime_ … That’s not how SAO works, if you want your skills to get better you have to either use them, or dump your accumulated points in them.”  
  
“Your RL skills do not transfer here,” he placed the tip of his finger to her mouth to stop her from speaking, “Your [ _Ability_ ] does not translate into [Skill Points] already granted.”  
  
She bit the tip of his finger, but all he did was pet her hair, “Come now _Hime_ , don’t you know not to make promises you can’t keep?”  
  
Her face went bright red as she jumped back, glaring heatedly when he laughed, “…You…” she growled, not able to right the right words. She’d known him for _two months_! Why the heck could he still fluster her like this?  
  
He chuckled, “I really don’t think either of us are ready for what you just promised,” his lips quirked up in a smirk, “Maybe in a few months.”  
  
“I haven’t promised anything!” she snapped back.  
  
He laughed, “How is My Asu-hime this innocent?”  
  
She sighed in relief when he turned to the counter and away from her, “How is it that he can still get under my skin so easily?” she asked herself.  
  
“So, I heard around the village that you are the best when it comes to cooking crustaceans,” he began, triggering the two quests.  
  
“That I am,” the elder elf replied, “I will only teach one person however.”  
  
“That’s fine,” Kirito replied, “My partner can cook, but we’ve come to acquire something she doesn’t have the skill to cook just yet. Would you be willing to teach her?”  
  
“Your partner?” the elf asked.  
  
He took a step to the side, revealing a pouting Asuna to her.  
  
The elf gave the human girl a look then nodded, turning back to him, “I’ll teach her. But you have to do something for me in return.”  
  
His eyes widened, this hadn’t been in the [Beta] either! “What do you need me to do?” he didn’t hesitate to ask, feeling like he had just doomed himself.  
  
Her smile widened, “Moses has already gone out to bring in the day’s catch but he’s not back yet, I want you to go help him.”  
  
“Then I shall do my best,” he turned away.  
  
“Kizmel speaks highly of you, I’m sure you won’t disappoint me.”  
  
That stopped them both. He nervously licked his upper lip, “Then I have a lot to live up to.”  
  
“You shouldn’t go alone,” his partner told him as he passed her.  
  
“I think I have too,” he replied, “I’ll be very careful Asuna, I promise.”  
  
She turned, watching him go out the door.  


* * *

  
He made his way to the pier, because where else was this quest going to start? There was a single elf wrestling with the line to a boat that was almost too large for him to pilot himself.  
  
Smiling, Kirito jogged up the pier and down the wooden dock, “Are you Moses?” he called, trying not to snicker at the obvious bible reference, (even if they did get it wrong, Moses was a _Shepard_ not a Fisherman).  
  
The old elf turned, he had the darkest skin of any [Dark Elf] that Kirito had yet seen, and his hair was a silvery purple, “I am Moses, did Nephta send you?”  
  
“If Nephta is the cook, then yes,” he replied, “She has agreed to teach my partner to cook if I came out here to help you. So, what are we going to be doing?”  
  
Moses stopped and turned to the young Adventurer, “Fishing is a very dangerous venture, are you sure you wish to help?”  
  
A warning like that usually meant that he would be facing some kind of Mob. But this was something he had to do, he’d been looking forward to trying something cooked by his partner since she’d told him that she was good at it IRL.  
  
And, even if her skill didn’t translate, since no one’s did, her experience meant that it wasn’t likely she’d burn something on her first try. But, that did only lend itself to some C rank ingredients, most D rank ingredients and all E rank ingredients. There was no way she’d be able to cook B rank ingredients at all yet. So, she needed the lesson, which meant that he, Kirito, needed to go fishing.  
  
It wasn’t as if he didn’t enjoy it either, it was one of the very few things he could do with his Grandfather that would not end in a shouting match, either between himself and the old man, his mother and the man, or his sister Sugu with the Geezer. He could handle some [Fishing].  
  
“I’m sure I can do it,” he replied, initiating the next stage of the quest. The ship they would use wasn’t large, especially by modern standards; he doubted that it was even fifty feet long. It didn’t even look thirty feet long. “How big is this boat?” he asked as he helped Moses untie it from the dock.  
  
“Almost fifteen Cubits,” Moses replied proudly, “It should hold everything we catch.”  
  
Cubits? His brain blue screened before rebooting at the archaic unit, when he recovered from the unexpected thing he tried to convert it into something he knew. How long was a Cubit again? He blinked, eying his right arm, right; it was the tip of the middle finger to the edge of the elbow. So that was about seven meters then? “It’s nice,” he forced a smile. Units had never been brought up in the [Beta], just another thing that had been changed then.  
  
But why use Cubits instead of feet or meters? Holding in a sigh, he opened his menu and typed a note to Heathcliff. Maybe the only remaining G.M could fix it. Trying to be _cute_ in a game like SAO could _cost lives_.  
  
“Where are these nets of yours then?” he asked, trying not to feel nervous.  
  
“Not far from here,” Moses replied as they pulled out of the docks.  


* * *

  
Heathcliff paused in his grinding when a chime went off, telling him that he’d gotten a PM from someone. He pressed the little indication button, “Oh, it’s from Kirito-kun…” his eyebrow started to twitch as he read the short message.  
  
He’d better go fix that…  


* * *

  
Kirito smiled as he pulled hard on the buoy connected to the net. Sure, this was very different to what he was used to doing, but it was still fishing. His strength stat made pulling the net in easy, but since he wasn’t sure he could rely on his knowledge of the marine mobs, he wasn’t sure what he’d be facing.  
  
He’d have to be extra careful, since he was on his own too. He’d promised his partner that he’d be alert.  
  
When the net started struggling, he knew that the hard part of the quest had begun.  
  
From the net came an attack that was swift as a snake, and he just barely dodged as it came into the boat. At a glance, he remembered the best way to fight and decided to forgo his sword. Winding up, he pulled his fist back and waited a few moments before exploding forward.  
  
Smashing the [Frilled Fish] in the gills and snapping its head back breaking the neck, he killed it; he lost a few pixels of HP, simply from the rough skin of the mob. Unlike everything else, this one stayed, motionless on the deck. “That’s one, Moses, how many are there?”  
  
The Elf turned to him, “Four more.”  
  
Kirito nodded, picking up the net again, thankfully there only background fish after that Mob. But knowing his luck, he was likely to find a Miniboss in the last net.  
  
On their way to the second of the five nets, Moses began teaching him how to control the ship. Taking a few moments before he had to collect the second net, he checked his HP again. He hadn’t lost nearly any. Next he checked Asuna’s, she was in the Inn, so he wasn’t expecting her to have lost any.  
  
He wasn’t sure where Lux was, but her HP was full, so that was good. And Kizmel… nothing had happened to her either.  
  
Moses gave a shout, and he picked up the hook, hurling it out over the water.  
  
“I’m just lucky that it automatically hooks if it’s thrown hard enough,” he muttered as he pulled the net in. He wasn’t sure how many Mobs would be in this one. If he was assuming correctly then there will be two, but he still wasn’t sure about the Mobs that would appear.  
  
The first was another [Frilled Fish], that he took care of the same way he did the first. This one, like the first didn’t explode either. The next thing that came up, he was actually surprised it fit in the boat. “…Is that an [Eel Dragon] from D&D?”  
  
No, its name was [Dragon Eel], and it was huge, with snow white scales that were nearly impossible to cut and blood red eyes that stared with such hate that Kirito could tangibly feel it. And yet, it somehow fit on the deck of the boat. Its fins were tipped with huge claws and a chain and anchor was growing out just behind the head.  
  
It snapped at him as he pulled out his sword. “Here’s hoping [Dark Sun] doesn’t break on me…” he muttered as he made a swipe at its gills. “Well, someone must be a fan of the classics…”  
  
It hissed in pain, going for him again as he jumped onto its snout. Running as best he could, he struck one eye with a quick thrust, then began cutting at it. Suddenly, it flung him away, and he barely caught the side railing of the ship.  
  
“No I do not want to go overboard,” he muttered as he pulled himself back onto the relative safety of the deck, going overboard spelled death. He checked his HP: he had two thirds left. “I’ll take a potion after I kill this thing.”  
  
Then, he was a blur of movement again. He threw all his weight behind his sword as he made his second lunge, he’d been able to carve out half its HP with that first run, but he doubted he was going to get that lucky again.  
  
If he remembered right, the tip of its nose was full of that… whatever it was that allowed sharks to sense electrical pulses in the water. That, and its Lateral Line should be a weak point he could exploit.  
  
He jumped to the side, flipping as his [Dark Sun] cut viciously into the flesh on its nose, taking out another tenth of HP. Jumping from the nose and pulling his sword free, he made a beeline for the non-ruined eye.  
  
Maybe if he was lucky, he’d kill this damned Eel before it had a chance to nearly throw him overboard again. That, and he was really, _really_ hoping that its attack patterns would not change when it got into the red.  
  
With a speed that could only be matched by his partner, he attacked the second eye, and waited with baited breath as its HP went to zero.  
  
Opening his menu, he pulled out a potion, checking how many he had, “I don’t even have fifteen,” he grumbled, but he did have more than ten. That was good at least.  
  
He drank the bitter potion quickly before hauling in the rest of the net. “Two down, three to go…” he glared down at the Eel, “My reward had _better be worth this shit_ …” he grumbled, checking the points in his [Fishing] Skill as he turned back to Moses.  


* * *

  
Moses pointed out the third net, but then surprised him by grabbing the hook himself, “Keep her steady kid.”  
  
“Yes sir,” he replied, taking the handle of the tilter with both hands. He _really hoped_ that this would be no different to how steering the Gondolas worked, why had his stomach just plummeted to the bottom of the sea?  
  
Was Moses supposed to die on this quest? He hoped not. Still, he took a deep breath as he watched the net come in. Nothing, nothing but the background fish in this one.  
  
“Where to now?” he asked as the elf came to stand next to him.  
  
“The fourth one is to the east of here and the last is to the north,” the old elf replied before lapsing into silence while keeping a watchful eye on the budding sailor. Satisfied with how they cut through the waves he picked up again, “This partner of yours…”  
  
Carefully, he manipulated the tiller, “What about her?” he asked, not sure where this was going.  
  
“She must be something, to have caught your attention, [Commander].”  
  
He tensed, what was with everyone calling him that?  
  
Moses’s mouth twitched in a hint of a smile, “That girl has the highest reserves we’ve seen, since,” he sighed, “Since before our [Princess Serenity] disappeared.”  
  
“Princess Serenity?” Kirito hazarded to ask, not taking his eyes off the water.  
  
“That girl was always trying crazy things,” the elf chuckled.  
  
“How so?”  
  
“She was going to try stabbing a [Titan Scorpion] in the eye after dropping off its tail,” was the reply, “Before her father put a stop to it.”  
  
“Her father?” he wasn’t even aware that he’d asked aloud until he got an unexpected answer.  
  
“Everyone suspects that her Father is, was, the [Captain H- of the Royal Guard].” Moses froze, coughing, “What I mean to say is that they had a pretty close relationship. The Princess probably looked up to him as a fatherly figure…”  
  
That response caused him to finally take his eyes off the water to stare at Moses with narrow eyes. “…I see.”  
  
“Anyway, that’s the only way to get quality meat from those damned things,” Moses continued, he looked like he wanted to say more but in the end decided not to.  


* * *

  
Asuna shivered, “I don’t like this,” she muttered to herself. Every time her partner left her sight, _something_ happened.  
  
“What’s your name Girl?” the old elf asked.  
  
She turned, “Asuna, my name’s Asuna.”  
  
“Kizmel has said good things about you as well,” the old elf smiled fondly, “You remind her greatly of her charge actually.”  
  
“…And who would that be?” the girl asked as she watched the NPC come out from behind the counter.  
  
“Follow me and you’ll find out,” the old elf gave her a toothy grin, “I’m Nephta by the way.”  
  
She perked up, following the old elf, Nephta, through a doorway she hadn’t noticed before.  


* * *

  
The kitchen was larger, more expansive than she thought that it would be, “Wow, you have such a nice kitchen.”  
  
It reminded her of the kitchen she had at home actually. In the center was a huge island with a large sink on one end. Turning her head, she could see a pantry in one corner, and cabinets from floor to ceiling lining one wall.  
  
In the corner across from the pantry, there was a huge wood burning stove. In the third corner was a fireplace that was just as big, and along the last wall was an even bigger oven.  
  
“…I’m going to learn to cook in here?” she squeaked. The oven and stove were as big as the ones she had at home. The only thing different was the fireplace.  
  
“Do you like it?” Nephta asked with a wide, proud smile.  
  
Asuna turned blinking. When it finally sank in that she was going to be learning to cook here, her joy caused her to smile so largely that it nearly split her face, “I love your kitchen! When do we start and what do we start with?”  
  
Nephta chuckled, “I have some meat still from yesterday, we’ll start with that…”  


* * *

  
Kirito brought the boat around, “Like this?” he looked up at Moses.  
  
The elf nodded, “Just like that boy.”  
  
He nodded; it had taken a few moments for his mind to reboot from that very surprising piece of information.  


* * *

  
Cardinal reran the footage twice before sitting back in her chair, looking thoughtful. “Master always seems to be out when they find something that will lead to the Princess, whoever she is…” But, what was the significance of Player Asuna wanting to keep them? It didn’t quite make any sense, unless…  
  
Cardinal played the ‘music box conversation’ back and listened to it again a third time. Her eyes narrowing as she pulled out the [Rainbow Crystal] sound bite and gave it another listen as well. Suddenly, her eyes widened and she took a sharp intake of breath. She leaned forward, her hands flying over the keys as she checked her suspicions, sitting heavily in her seat when she was finished, and _proven right_. “…Master, you have no idea how lucky you are…”


	10. Fishing for Mobs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fishing is hard, but cooking is fun!

Kirito gave the tiller a careful nudge, finally having gotten used to using it to steer the boat, bringing it about in a nearly smooth arc to port and letting it glide to a stop beside the last of the five nets. That last fight had been rather tough, three [Frill Fish] and a [Shark Goblin]… he shivered just remembering the way the strange mouth had nearly taken his entire left arm off. “Goblin Sharks, just what I wanted to fight in this damned game,” he trailed off sarcastically, pulling another potion out and drinking it down. He never thought he’d be thankful to his Grandfather for making him sit through Shark Week every year.  
  
  
“We’re here boy, drop anchor,” Moses rumbled, a prideful smile on his face. The young [Commander] might not look like much right now, but the kid knew his stuff. He had a good grasp on how to handle the unknown, and he always kept a cool head. He could see why the [Captain] had chosen this kid to succeed him.  
  
  
Being careful not to let the boat go out of control, the fourteen-year-old reached for a lever, “This one Moses?”  
  
  
“That’s the one kid,” the elf nodded.  
  
  
Carefully, he pulled the lever back and the anchor plunged into the water. Once the chain stopped moving, he joined Moses at the railing, “I suppose we are pulling it in together then?”  
  
  
The elf nodded, handing him a second hook, “We have to hook the line at the same time, it’s the biggest net I have.”  
  
  
“Right,” Kirito acknowledged. Together they threw the hooks. Something sent a tremor of unease down his spine, and the young human knew that this would not be the same as the other encounters.  
  
  
“You seem to be a natural at this,” Moses mused as he watched the youth almost expertly pull the net into the boat.  
  
  
Kirito looked up, “I used to go fishing with my Grandfather.” And nothing else needed to be said.  
  
  
He nearly lost his grip on the net as it began to thrash about.  
  
  
“Looks like it will be a big one this time!” Moses crowed.  
  
  
The dark haired boy grimaced, “Don’t rejoice until we’ve killed it,” he snapped back, giving a huge heave, finally seeing huge, long tentacles of the [Cracken]. “Great, squid to go with scorpion, eel and shark tonight.” He growled, pulling [Dark Sun] from behind his back.  
  
  
“Just what I wanted,” he grinned, “I can’t wait to see what Asu-hime can make of this!”  
  
  
He began to strike swiftly at the tentacles as they tried to attack him and Moses.  
  
  
Despite the attacks, the [Cracken] managed to pull itself into the small boat. Moving slowly, Kirito made his way to Moses’ side, “You come across this thing often?”  
  
  
“Every time,” the elf muttered darkly, “But it always gets away.”  
  
  
“Well,” the boy grinned, feeling the adrenaline begin to rush through his veins, “It won’t this time!”  
  
  
He hadn’t taken a miniboss of any kind on his own since his Solo days in the [Beta] but he still remembered how it was supposed to work. Solo play was hard but rewarding, and while it was a playstyle he gleefully discarded, to keep Asuna, his partner, safe and happy, he still knew how to handle a boss like this one on his own. “I really should have grabbed Lux or Kizmel before going to find Moses…”  
  
  
He would have to play this carefully. He sliced a tentacle that came too close, trying to decide which [Sword Skill] to use. He didn’t want to accidentally fall overboard, as that would put him at a serious disadvantage in fighting the [Cracken] while trying to keep himself from drowning. Of course, using them too much would be Overkill, which usually wasn’t a smart move as using [Sword Skills] could be mentally exhausting. On the other hand, spamming [Sword Skills] might kill the damned thing faster.  
  
  
Chopping at the eight tentacles as he was wouldn’t get him anywhere; the first of the two HP Bars had barely been dented. There had to be a weak point somewhere.  
  
  
Its body was soft, there was no backbone, but there was a very hard, very sharp, beak in that mess somewhere.  
  
  
Asuna was going to kill him for getting into this mess; well, if he didn’t get killed by the mob first. On top of that, he had to protect Moses since the NPC didn’t seem to have any weapons. Escort missions were disliked by many players for a reason, but at least Kayaba hadn’t made Kizmel a noncombatant. Moses on the other hand, wasn’t a fighter. “This sucks,” he muttered as he sliced off the tip of another tentacle.  
  
  
He’d dealt with monsters like this one before, Solo even. But he didn’t remember if he’d ever been on an escort mission at the same time or not.  
  
  
It didn’t matter, he was on an escort mission now. He just had to get as close as he could or... He then remembered his throwing picks and wondered if they would work. If so, good. If not, it was worth a try. “I’m going to have to restock, I just know it,” he muttered with a savage smile as he pulled several picks from his belt.  
  
  
All he knew was that he wanted Calamari with his Shark and Scorpion.  


* * *

  
Cardinal pinched the bridge of her nose before typing out several lines of code to set up the subroutine for monitoring the [Find the Princess] quest triggers, “How does he keep doing this?”  


* * *

  
He threw the picks, one after another, pinning each of the tentacles to the deck of the boat. Then he pulled his sword back out and charged the [Cracken], lowering his shoulders and holding the hilt with two hands for more power, he drove [Dark Sun] into the mob’s left eye.  
  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the tentacles nailed to the deck slowly wriggling the picks loose. He grunted, twisting [Dark Sun] before pulling upwards with all his strength.  
  
  
The huge eyeball exploded, covering Kirito in slime. Not taking another moment, he leaped back, narrowly, but deftly avoiding one of the freed tentacles as the [Cracken] screamed loud enough to make his ears ring.  
  
  
Moses hissed in pain, closing his eyes, in doing so, he missed the tentacle aimed to sweep him from the deck.  
  
  
Kirito winced the ringing in his ears before giving a quick look around. The first thing he saw was the attack aimed at the NPC. He ran a few steps, jumping over the tentacles when he needed to, and sliced through the three that would have removed Moses from the boat.  
  
  
When Kirito looked back up, he was surprised to find that half of the [Cracken’s] second health bar was gone. “Did I really do that much damage?” Sure he was over leveled a little, and [Dark Sun] was OP until the tenth floor, but he wasn’t strong enough to do that much in one go, right?  
  
Could the eye be its weak point like it had been on the scorpion? Maybe that was it. He doubted that he’d get a chance to get at the other eye.  
  
  
Checking his HP, he was relieved to see that he was still in the Green. “I’ll have to check how many potions I have left after I kill this thing…” He said as he wiped his brow, starting to feel the simulated heat of the sun and panting slightly from exertion. He didn’t speak up before, but now he was starting to wonder how long they’d been at sea.  
  
  
Shaking his head, he put his mind back on his current task: Protecting Moses and bringing in the day’s catch. “And in today’s episode of “The Deadliest Catch” one of the huge species of squid has managed to make it onto the Northwestern, let’s see how the Captain deals with subduing it.” He said sarcastically.  
  
  
There was a flicker in his peripheral vision and the next moment, he’d managed to completely detach one of mob’s eight arms. He was closer to the [Cracken] than he was Moses, which would likely be a problem if the fight didn’t finish soon. He had a good shot at the remaining eye, but he was wondering if it was worth the risk. He took one last look at his HP: he still had just under two thirds left. Well, time to enter the tiger’s cave, he thought as he steeled himself.  
  
  
His feet slid apart, his stance lowered, and he brought his sword up over his shoulder. A moment later and he was on the other side of the deck, his [Dark Sun] lodged in the mob’s only remaining eye. Holding his breath, he watched as the second HP Gauge drained and then disappeared, the [Cracken] falling lifelessly to the deck, unmoving.  
  
  
He panted, noting the strangeness if a mob not exploding into polygons. He felt the adrenaline draining away quickly and took a knee as the last of the combat rush faded. “That was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be…” He waited a few moments to get his breath back before getting back to his feet.  
  
  
A hand came down, slapping his back rather hard and nearly sent him back to his knees, “You did well kid,” Moses complimented him.  
  
  
“Thanks,” he breathed, his back strangely numb from the impact. The quest was over; it was time to return to the village.  
  
  
"Now here," looking up Moses was thrusting a water bottle into his hands, "being at sea can be draining, you have to drink more to stay hydrated even without fighting off all manner of things."  
  
  
Kirito nodded, pulling the cork out and taking a few sips, “Let’s return to the village already.”  


* * *

  
Asuna had done her best to ignore her partner’s fluctuating HP Bar while keeping a close eye and ear on what Nephta was doing.  
  
  
Nephta turned to look out the window, “They should be back soon, and I think this is all you need now,” she pulled out a scroll and wrote the recipe down, handing it to the girl.  
  
  
Asuna blinked, it was in that strange language her Partner had her start learning on the last floor, but, she had no trouble at all reading it. “Thank you Nephta,” she bowed, getting up to follow the old elf to the docks.  
  
  
She checked Kirito’s HP, it was hanging in the Green, and the bar was almost full. “I don’t know if I should kill him or not,” she grumbled silently, “That’s the second time today that he’s worried me…”  


* * *

  
Kirito sighed in relief when the village came into view, “I feel like we’ve been gone far longer than we really have.”  
  
  
Moses chuckled, “You miss your partner that much [Commander]?” He nudged the young Player.  
  
  
“…” his face went bright red, “Not like that.” he replied.  
  
  
But was that really it? Sure she was pretty, she was strong, stronger than he was he suspected. She was his friend, so of course he liked her. But the way she’d saved him from that [Alpha Lion], the sun glinting off her blade as she distracted the mob long enough for him to get back on his feet. The way the spray of droplets from the sea sparkled when she’d turned those eyes to him… his cheeks grew darker. She was his Partner, his friend, his… Who was she to him?  


* * *

  
Asuna tapped her foot as the small fishing boat (by modern standards) coasted into its berth and the gangplank was lowered into place. She visibly relaxed when he came down and stepped onto the safety of the dock.  
  
  
He gave her an almost silly grin, and she almost lost it. She was no longer at Nephta’s side; instead she’d thrown her arms around him and held on as tightly as she dared, “This is the second time today that you’ve scared me near death!”  
  
  
“I’m sorry, it wasn’t a simple [Fishing Mission] like I’d thought it would be,” he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and they followed Moses down the pier, back to where Nephta was waiting, “I only realized that I should have taken Lux or Kizmel with me after we’d already left port and there was no way to turn back.”  
  
  
“I think I’d be angrier if you hadn’t used your healing potions,” she mumbled, leaning into his side a little more heavily, “So, what did you bring back?” she looked up at him through her bangs almost shyly. Was she getting too attached? Maybe, but at the moment, she couldn’t bring herself to care.  
  
  
“We’ve got several Frill Sharks, one Goblin Shark, which almost took my entire left arm off,” he hesitated to admit, “A Dragon Eel from D&D and a giant squid. So, it looks like we’re going to have Shark Fin Soup and Calamari to go with that Scorpion meat that you got from the [Titan Scorpion].”  
  
  
“…Seriously?” she asked, watching as each of the mobs her partner had slain during the quest were off loaded. “Kayaba seriously put this stuff in this game?”  
  
  
“Or one of the other Devs,” he agreed, “Goblin Sharks are creepy, with that mouth…”  


* * *

  
Nephta watched Asuna from where she was, leaning on the counter of the island with sharp eyes as she cooked the evening’s meal, “The [Commander], you have feelings for him don’t you?”  
  
  
She shook her head, concentrating even harder on the Soup in front of her, “I haven’t known him long enough. I like him well enough, but I wouldn’t label my feelings ‘love’.” She thought she did very well hiding her blush. It was just a silly crush, nothing more, nothing less.  
  
  
“Oh?” Nephta smirked, tossing her some more of the [Frill Fish] meat, “How long have you known him then?”  
  
  
“I’d say a little over a month now,” Asuna replied, deftly snatching the fish from the air, deciding that she would ignore anymore teasing from the NPC.  


* * *

  
Asuna placed several dishes in front of him, “Dinner is served then.”  
  
  
Kirito watched as she sat down with some plates of her own, “I’ve been looking forward to this.”  
  
  
“Oh?” she asked with a smirk, waiting until he’d taken the first bite, “If you worry me like that again you’ll be making your own for at least the rest of the day.” She took a sip of the [Frill Fish] Soup she’d made to go with the steak and sushi, completely missing the way her partner’s eyes had rounded at the taste of the steak.  
  
  
Carefully, he put his utensils down, “This is absolutely the best thing I’ve tasted since we were all trapped here…”  
  
  
She blushed, turning away, “I’m glad to know you approve,” she picked up her wine glass and took a sip, hopefully hiding her growing blush, “I told you I was good didn’t I?”  
  
  
He chuckled, “Yes you did,” he turned his attention back to the food in front of him.  
  
  
The rest of the meal was spent in quiet companionship.  
  
  
After dinner, Lux approached them before the pair could retreat to their room, “Thanks for making dinner, Asuna-sama.”  
  
  
Asuna shook her head. “It was no problem Lux,” she said as she covered a yawn, “I’m going to get some sleep.”  
  
  
“We’re planning to do a little Solo questing tomorrow, will you be all right on you own Lux?” Kirito asked as his partner disappeared through a doorway.  
  
  
Lux gave a smile that was clearly fake to the other two, indicating that she was disappointed in how Kirito wouldn’t be up to helping her train. “I’ll be fine,” she said. “Perhaps I’ll train a bit in the morning, those [Elph Lions] were tough, but I almost gained a level from them and the [Forest Elves] earlier.”  
  
  
“As long as you don’t disturb the [Alpha Lion] you can pick off each of the other Lions for EXP,” he agreed, hiding his own yawn, “I’ll see you in the morning, I’m tired too.”  


* * *

  
When Kirito walked down the stairs the next morning, he found Asuna waiting by the archway into the kitchen. Something about the way she stood seemed much too… regal for this Inn and that kitchen. Seeing her in the kitchen was another matter. His partner and friend was in her element.  
  
  
“Good morning Asuna,” he called, coming down the last few steps, “Need any help?”  
  
  
She turned, “Oh, good morning Kirito-kun,” she looked back into the kitchen, “Perhaps not right now. Nephta has been really nice, letting me use her kitchen like this.”  
  
  
He shrugged, “Can I watch? I’m not such a bad cook myself but well, I am more use to cooking things that don’t take much time.”  
  
  
She laughed, “You’re welcome to watch, just don’t get in the way.”  
  
  
“I promise,” his quiet laughter joining her own as he followed her into the kitchen.  


* * *

  
“You know, I think it’s about time I took you to visit the [Historian],” his eyes followed her as she prepared a stew with the [Elph Meat] they had been carrying since the day before. “We’ve been up here for perhaps two and a half days, I think we have time before someone discovers the Labyrinth, much less the Boss Room.”  
  
  
“I was starting to wonder if you’d forgotten about that,” she set the timer and turned to him, leaning on the counter next to the stove, “We’ve been so busy I would not have been surprised.”  
  
  
“You know I’m better than that, Asu-hime,” he gave her a fake pained look.  
  
  
She almost snorted, “Yes, I know you are, and don’t give me that look Mister, I know that didn’t hurt you one bit!” she sent him a smirk.  
  
  
“Would you like me to make some tea to go with our breakfast?” he smirked, conceding the point to her, “I’m quite good at it IRL.”  
  
  
She gestured for him to join her, “Really?”  
  
  
“I’m not quite good enough to make my own blend, but let’s see what’s here…” He looked over his partner’s shoulder when she opened the Kitchen’s menu and began to slowly scroll through it.  
  
  
Neither noticed Kizmel back out of the room with a large smile on her face.  


* * *

  
Osaka Naru didn’t even try to stop the tears rolling down her cheeks as she sat at her best friend’s bedside. She still couldn’t believe that her actions had nearly killed the girl lying motionless on the bed. If Shingo hadn’t been there…  
  
  
“What do I do now, Usagi?” she whimpered, putting her face in her hands, “I’m sorry, so, so sorry…” her breath hitched as a hand came down on her trembling left shoulder.  
  
  
“There’s nothing we can do for now,” her mother whispered.  
  
  
“Usagi, you shouldn’t have taken that vacation day…” Tsukino Ikuko whispered, leaning into her husband’s side.  


* * *

  
Luna sighed as another mob shattered behind her, “This is easier than I thought. Still freakin' terrifying…” Perhaps she should have chosen a long sword, or a lance, but neither had felt right in her hand. “Let’s see what materials I’ve picked up so far…”  
  
  
Looking around to make sure she’s cleared the area of mobs, she opened her menu and selected [Items]. Scrolled through the new items she’d picked up, she nodded. “Most of this stuff I don’t need, but one or two I can use. The skins I could sell to a [Merchant] or a [Tailor]… Though I don’t think anyone’s gone that route yet,” She nibbled on her fingernail in thought, “And these [Wolf Teeth] I can sell to a Blacksmith.”  
  
  
Now the question was if there was a [Blacksmith] in town. She’d have to check before moving to a higher level area.  
  
  
Maybe [The Rat] would come meet her again. “Floor three isn’t so hard now, but I haven’t left the main city yet, perhaps it’s time I moved on?”  
  
  
She’d have to ask around before leaving for one of the villages, maybe Argo would have another commission for her to make! As far as she knew, she was the only [Blacksmith] specializing in [Accessories].  


* * *

  
The twelve-year-old gulped as a rare [Feathered Dragon] approached her, sniffing at her fingers. Ayano Keiko, known as Silica, blinked; pulling the bag of peanuts she’d bought as a snack and held one out with trembling fingers.  
  
  
The [Feathered Dragon] chirped, taking the offered treat happily.  
  
  
Hesitantly, Silica reached out to pet the mob, only to jerk her hand back when a window opened: [Would you like to Tame this [Feathered Dragon]?]  
  
  
Blinking, her eyes widened as she realized what was going on. With a wide smile, she pressed [Yes]. Taking a few moments to think, she decided to name her new friend Pina.  
  
  
She giggled as her new friend landed on her shoulder and started licking her cheek, “Pina, that tickles!”  
  
  
Opening her menu, she checked her level, “Level nine, I’m still at level nine,” she sighed unhappily, “I thought for sure that my last fight would do it,” she grumbled, but no; she still had ten EXP to go.  
  
  
“What should I do Pina? Should I fight one more mob or just return to the city for the night?” she looked to the [Feathered Dragon] on her left shoulder.  
  
  
Pina blinked her red eyes and tilted her head to one side before giving a cry and took off, flying farther into the forest, away from the city.  
  
  
“Huh,” she blinked, “Guess that answers that then. Pina, wait up!” she ran after her new pet.


	11. Midnight Battle at Moonrise Lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Night time battles are never fun.

Lux grinned when she saw them leaving the inn, “Kirito, Asuna-sama,” she called.  
  
  
The other girl turned smiling brightly, “Good morning Lux, did you sleep well?”  
  
  
“Yup,” Lux agreed, “Um, I had a few questions to ask, and I was hoping you’d help me?” she turned imploring eyes to the boy.  
  
  
“Sure, what did you need?” he asked.  
  
  
“I…” she looked down, “Need help restructuring how I play.”  
  
  
Kirito looked her over. "How so?" He asked. From what he could see, her dagger and shield were both in good condition and from what little he’d seen of her, Lux knew how to use them well.  
  
  
Lux looked up at him. "Using a dagger and a shield just isn't working for me," she looked down sadly, as if to hide some great shame. "I saw how you are with a sword, and wonder if using a sword and shield, or just a sword, would work. But... I'm not sure how to go about it, not really."  
  
  
Kirito looked at Asuna, who nodded to him. "We were going to get going on the [Elven War] quest line, but I don't see how heading out a few minutes later should affect things much," she mused, patting her partner on the shoulder. "I'll look for Kizmel and inform her of the delay." She turned towards where the elf had said she’d be, looking for someone.  
  
  
"I didn't mean to delay you," Lux squeaked. She really didn’t want to be a burden on either of them!  
  
  
"It's fine," Asuna smiled, waving it off. "This is only for advice, right?"  
  
  
Lux nodded, blushing. Asuna was really just going to go off on her own? But she never went anywhere without Kirito, that Lux had seen anyway.  
  
  
"Then it won't delay us long," Asuna concluded, "If any training is needed, we can do it when we get back in the afternoon or this evening." She got a thoughtful look on her face. "Or we can do some training tomorrow." She gave her partner a look.  
  
  
The boy nodded, “Of course, though it might take a while to explain the differences between the swords and the styles that go with them,” he gave his partner a playful salute, “We’ll probably be in the Inn when you get back.” He turned to lead Lux back into the Inn.  
  
  
“That won’t be necessary, Asuna, [Commander],” the three players almost jumped when the aforementioned [Dark Elf] appeared from the shadows, “I’ll help her.”  
  
  
“Can you really Kizmel?” he asked, he had started feeling nervous again, with both girls standing there. But then he shook his head, he had to do this.  
  
  
The elf nodded, “Don’t worry so much [Commander], I studied several different swords before settling on the one I’m currently using. I can help her decide on a blade to use.”  
  
  
“She asked me Kizmel, I really should oblige her,” he replied.  
  
  
Lux’s eyes lit up, “You mean,” she stopped, her eyes widening even more as she comprehended what Kirito had said, “Really?” she asked.  
  
  
Kirito thought he did rather well hiding his flinch, she sounded so hopeful that he just couldn’t back out now, “Yes, really,” he turned to Asuna, “Would you like to sit in on this too, Asuna?”  
  
  
Asuna frowned for a moment before shaking her head, “If we aren’t going to be leaving for a few minutes then perhaps I should just make us a nicer lunch than what I’ve got now, I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me.”  
  


 

* * *

Kirito pulled his sword and scabbard from over his shoulder, “Now Lux, what exactly were you hoping to accomplish?” he asked as he sat down, placing his sword on the table.

 

Carefully, Lux placed her sheathed dagger and shield on the table, “I’m starting to feel as if I chose the wrong weapon to use. At first I took a dagger because I was kind of scared that I’d hurt myself using something longer.”

 

Kirito smiled, “Lux, this might be our life now, but we are still in a video game, your hand will regenerate given enough time, as will your HP, that’s why we all carry potions and [Crystals] after all.”

 

Her shoulders slumped, “I know it’s silly, but the dagger also felt the most comfortable in my hand.”

 

“Then it should remain as your main weapon,” Kirito looked thoughtful, “You’re looking for a secondary weapon for when your dagger isn’t the best choice.”

 

“Yes, sir,” she nodded, missing him flinch again, “But I don’t want a two handed sword or a spear, both feel much too…” she trailed off

 

“Unwieldy, you’re looking for the word unwieldy,” he supplied.

 

“Yes, thank you, I know there are one handed swords,” she bit her lip, “but there are so many kinds…”

 

Kirito had opened his menu as he’d listened intently, looking for something that would help. He personally had helped Argo write the guide to help with this, so where was his copy of ‘Argo’s Guide to Sword Art Online’s Weapons’? He hadn’t lent it to anyone, even his partner since she hadn’t had any questions about using her rapier.

 

“I just can’t make a choice,” Lux finished as he found what he was looking for.

 

“I have something that will help,” he replied, physically reaching into his Inventory to pull the book out, “This book explains the differences between all the types of swords there are, as well as their names.”

 

He passed her the book, “A [One-Handed Sword] is called an [Arming Sword], it can easily be used with a shield like yours or a [Buckler].”

 

“…What’s a [Buckler]?” she asked in confusion as she took the book, looking down at the title.

 

He smiled, “Chapter Three: Types of Shields,” he waited for her to open the book to the right page, “A [Buckler] is a small (usually) round shield, used mainly to protect the off hand. That’s the one not holding the sword.”

 

“Oh,” her eyes widened as she read the sentence she’d heard him say. “Argo wrote this?”

 

He chuckled, “I wrote most of that guide myself actually, although Argo helped,” his smile was catching, “I think I experimented with almost every single weapon in the game that I could get my hands on.”

 

“Then, why did you pick this?” Lux yelped, almost dropping [Dark Sun], even as she picked it up.

 

Kirito gave her a teasing smirk, “Because the [One-Handed Long Sword] felt the most comfortable in my hand, I didn’t pick up a shield because it didn’t feel right,” he explained, leaning forward, “Now, my [Dark Sun] is rather heavy because I like heavy swords, the heavier they are the harder they hit, but you can get a taste of how it fits in your hand by giving it a swing.”

 

“That sword there is actually a [Bastard] or [Hand and a Half],” he explained, “That’s still classified as a [Long Sword] though,” he elaborated, “The [Two Handed Long Swords] are longer than that one, but not the size of the ones that are clearly meant for two hands. The calling them by One and Two Handed weapons is a bit inaccurate though. Longswords were designed to be used with two hands, but are small enough that you can be trained to wield them with one hand.. At least, that’s what I learned from doing a bit of research. I’m no expert.” He shook his head. “It’s more a development choice to give more options, and it’s an acceptable break from how they would be in the real world.”

 

She nodded, “You said I could… swing it?” the thought of accidentally cutting him with his own sword was terrifying.

 

He nodded, “Go ahead, it’s the best way to get a feel for the new weapon.” He then smiled. “We’re in a safe zone, so you can’t hurt anyone unless a combat event is going on inside one.”

 

“Okay…”

 

 

* * *

“So, what are we doing then?” Asuna asked once they were away from the village.

 

“According to the Village Chief, there have been a lot more [Saber Tigers] in the area than there really should be,” his eyes narrowed.

 

“What is it?” she asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

 

“I’m wondering if this is new content again or if I’m starting to forget things,” he then shrugged, “I have been the one saying not to put all of your trust the information from the [Beta] though, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this really was new content.”

 

“Are you expecting trouble?” her grip tightened.

 

“Not for the [Exterminate the Pest] part of the quest no,” he replied slowly as he tried to think of a way to articulate his concern. He just could not put his finger on what it was that was bothering him. “The [Saber Tigers] usually live deep in the forest, away from where any elves, [Forest] or [Dark] would usually patrol. But for this quest they should be…”

 

He opened his menu and went to the Map Function, “Right around here, was where the mobs were in the [Beta]…” he pointed to a blank spot on the Map when his partner peeked over his shoulder.

 

“That’s really close to where we saw the [Forest Elves],” she breathed, “But why were they there in the first place?”

 

“They were part of a later quest in this chain,” he paused, “That is… if one of the Devs hasn’t gone and changed half the [Campaign] on us…”

 

“Don’t they usually change something between the test phases and actual games though?” she repeated.

 

“They do,” He replied with a nod. “Kayaba came and spoke to us on the last day; he promised that some things would remain the same. But I don’t remember him telling us what would and what wouldn’t.” he rested his chin on one hand as he stared at his Map, “The Devs could have changed something they weren’t supposed to, and I doubt he’d be able to fix anything without taking the game offline for a few hours to a few days.”

 

“And doing that would probably kill us all,” she realized.

 

He nodded again, “Shall we get going?”

 

She took his hand in hers, and together they entered the forest.

 

 

* * *

The [Saber Tiger] gave a loud, ear splitting roar of a scream as it turned to face Kirito, it was three and a half meters long (including the tail) and around a meter and a half tall at the shoulder. It had a rich orangey-gold coat of fur with black stripes down its sides, legs, back and tail.

 

Off to the side, his partner panted, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say this thing was a Smilodon with a tiger’s tail attached,” she shook her head to get her hair out of her eyes.

 

He smirked, “Well, all it will take is one more strike!” He thrust his sword, [Dark Sun] through the last [Saber Tiger] as it charged him, killing it, “And that’s the last one, I think.”

 

Asuna opened her (still visible) menu to check the Quest Status, “Yep, that’s the last of the [Tigers] that we needed to kill.” She dismissed her menu, “Shall we head back?”

 

“Sounds good to me,” he agreed, sheathing [Dark Sun]. He smiled, taking her hand in his as they changed direction to return to the village. A pair of bloodthirsty roars stopped them in their tracks.

There were two [Saber Tigers] melting out of the shadows of the forest behind them, one a [Black Saber] the other a [White Saber]. Both were equally rare in that they almost never appeared.

 

Kirito sucked in a breath, “I really don’t like this…”

 

Asuna started backing away, “What should we do?”

 

“Feel up to bravely running away?”

 

Asuna snorted. “If you think we can run that fast,” she replied, not taking her eyes off the huge cats.

 

“I don’t really want to fight. Are you tired?” he asked, also backing away, “Because I am.”

 

“Maybe a little,” she allowed, “And the forest is where they fight best…”

 

“Perhaps we should find an open space then?”

 

Yeah, let’s go,”

 

Together they made to run away.

 

 

* * *

They dashed into the clearing, the [Tigers] hot on their trail. Kirito began to slide as he watched the shadow of one jump over them and circled around. The [Black Saber] turned around, snarling.

 

His partner pressed her back against his, “Any ideas?”

 

“Not yet,” he replied, “What about you?”

 

She shook her head, “Nope, unfortunately,” she looked thoughtful for a moment, “Actually…”

 

“I don’t care if it’s as crazy as what you pulled yesterday with the scorpion,” he looked to her from the corner of his eye, “Any idea will work.”

 

The two [Sabers] roared, causing the two players to tighten their grips on their swords, “I think I have one, but it’s really risky. Because one of us needs to take an attack so that we can get them off balance.”

 

“I’m listening,” he urged her to keep talking.

 

She nodded, “Ok, so, when they attack, we have to decide which of us will take the attack and having those fangs centimeters away from our faces.”

 

“Well,” he watched the [Black Saber] begin to circle around them, “On one hand, I’m a higher level and thus have more HP to lose, so I should be the one to take the attack from whichever.”

 

“On the other, you are the one with the heavier sword, which would do more damage and kill the mob faster.”

 

His smirk stretched into an almost reckless smile as he followed her thoughts to the logical conclusion, “But while I have power, my dear Asu-hime, you have precision, which means that you’re much more likely to get crits which would kill them even faster than if I would.” He started to tense, making a snap decision, as the [Saber] in front of him got ready to pounce, “You dodge, I’ll take the attack!”

 

Her eyes widened, “What? But I…”

 

He was already sheathing his blade, “Just do it,” he ordered.

 

She bit her lip, nodding as the two [Sabers] finally pounced.

 

Three quick steps to the left and she was out of the path of the [Sabers]. Turning, she hated what she saw, despite knowing that this was the best chance they had at winning.

 

His voice snapped her attention back to what she should be doing, “Because you are so accurate, my Asuna, I trust you to only hit these [Sabers] and not me.” His hands were almost glowing as he strained to keep the [Tiger] from biting his face off.

 

Her eyes narrowed, even as her chest grew warm, and pushed off as fast, as hard, as she could. One very precise strike to the top of the head, stopping a millimeter away from her partner’s nose, killed the [Black Saber] that had been on top of him.

 

Enraged, the [White Saber] roared, its eyes beginning to glow a terrifying red, lunged for them. Pushing her out of the way, Kirito again took the mob by its teeth, wincing when he noticed his HP dropping down to a third.

 

This time, Asuna didn’t hesitate.

 

 

* * *

He panted slowly, staring off into space for a few moments as he came down from his terrifying high. He grinned when she looked down at him. “Can we not do that again?”

 

Asuna giggled, agreeing, “Yeah, let’s not,” she extended her hand, “We always seem to be running into these types of situations don’t we?”

 

Kirito chuckled as he took her hand and pulled himself up, “It would be just our luck, wouldn’t it?”

She leaned against him as they started back towards the village again, “I’m sorry I put you in that position,” she dug out a potion and handed it to him, “that, that really scared me. I’m not going to let you…”

 

“Asuna,” he sighed, uncorking the potion, “It’s alright, I understand. There are going to be moments where our roles will be reversed.”

 

He downed the potion, “Do you not trust me?”

 

Her eyes widened, “I do!”

 

A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, “Then your It!”

 

She blinked as he dashed ahead before realized what he’d done, “Kirito-kun,” she called weakly, dashing after him, “Come back!”

 

 

* * *

They were nearly halfway back to the seaside village, not to mention exhausted, when they came across something… odd. It seemed to be a camp of some kind, abandoned. “What is this?” Asuna asked once they were almost in the middle of it, her hand clutching his since she’d caught him just minutes before.

 

“It’s obviously a camp,” Kirito snarked.

 

“That’s enough out of you,” she snarked back.

 

“As you wish Asu-hime,” he smirked teasingly, “So, shall we loot the camp then?”

 

“That’s… normal Gamer behavior?” she asked hesitantly. She’d been itching to do just that but hadn’t known if it was something done or not.

 

He nodded, “We tend to take anything that isn’t nailed to the floor, and some of the more hardcore guys even try to take the stuff that is,” he shrugged, “It’s up to you though.”

 

She looked around, taking in the smoldering fire pit, the erected tents, and all the other miscellaneous things littering the ground, “What are the chances that one of the Patrols have gone missing?”

 

“The Chieftain would have said something, but we can mention it to someone when we get back,” he allowed, patiently waiting for her to make her decision.

 

She gave him a slow smile, “You can find the best kind of stuff by doing this, right?”

 

He gave her a slow nod, “Yes, sometimes the best loot is the stuff you find in houses or chests in dungeons, or in enemy camps.”

 

“…” she looked like she was dying to ask something.

 

“Ask away, Asu-hime.”

 

“Can we…” her smile actually scared him for a moment, “Can we burn the camp to the ground once we’re done?”

 

He blinked beginning to sweat as she started pouting and widened her eyes.

 

“Please?” she begged, dragging out the word.

 

Well, his Asu-hime certainly wasn’t a novice gamer anymore. “Seriously, how can my Asuna-hime be this cute while suggesting burning down a place?” he wondered surrendering, “Sure.”

 

She gave a delighted little squeal, “Yay, thanks Kirito-kun!” and zipped into the first tent.

 

He smiled, rolling his eyes as he knelt to stoke the embers back into a roaring, yellow hot flame. Once that was done, he went into the second of the three tents.

 

A quarter of an hour later, they left the strange camp, their inventories packed to the limit. “We aren’t going to be running anywhere anytime soon,” Kirito grumbled not without satisfaction. Behind them, the whole camp was ablaze. And make no mistake, that camp was burning. They hadn’t taken the tents because the ones he was already carrying were of much better quality. And while he had a camping stove, Asuna had snapped up the one in camp because it was of a higher rank than his. He was planning to sell his already.

 

But, those weren’t the only items they’d found.

 

“It’s the items that were in that third tent we found that don’t really make sense,” he brought up his log to show her, “What do we need two sharpening stones, two hundred unit bottles of Choji oil, some cloth, two small brass hammers, and two Uchiko for?”

 

He turned to look at her, “That’s two Sword Maintenance Kits, why would we need even one in a game?”

 

That was a good question, one that confused her just as much, “I don’t know, Kirito-kun,” she replied, looking up into his eyes, she was sure that the confusion she saw in his was reflected in hers.

 

That wasn’t the only thing bothering him. Why had the system allowed them to burn the camp?

 

Asuna poked his cheek, “What’s up, something bothering you?”

 

He blinked, “How could you tell?”

 

She gave him a concerned look, “You were staring off into space with a strange look in your eye.”

 

He shook his head, “Just thinking about something.”

 

She gave him a skeptical look, “Well?”

 

“Well what?”

 

“Are you going to tell me or not?” she gave him a pleading look as she began fishing through her Inventory.

 

“Our ability to burn the camp down…” he paused, “Something about that feels… off, why would it be a single time quest item like that. Shouldn't other players get access as well after respawn...? Huh, maybe the camp does respawn in a different place...”

 

She just shrugged in response.

 

 

* * *

The village was a small one, surrounded by a tightly packed earthen wall that was indistinguishable from the surrounding sand dunes. The earthen wall opened in only one place, an easily barred postern gate. To either side of it, there were two small training fields, allowing those in them to either confront potential attackers, or withdraw to within the walls.

 

Kirito and Asuna tiredly made their way into the village, taking note of Kizmel and Lux sparring in one of the training fields. The human girl was wielding a [bastard sword] much like Kirito’s own, to his surprise. He honestly thought she would go with an [arming sword], since that was easier to use with a shield, but if she wanted to use a longer blade, he wouldn’t stop her.

 

“We’re back,” Asuna said. “I think I’ll go and get some snacks for us.”

 

“Wouldn’t it be better if we went back to the place we’ve been staying at?” Kirito asked.

 

Asuna shook her head. “We were out longer than we planned to be,” she said as she pulled a basket out of her inventory. “Our being chased by those [Sabers] forced us to miss lunch, and it’s already late afternoon. It’s late enough that we might as well stay here for the night, rather than head back and get there well after dark.”

 

 

* * *

Kirito stretched as he waited for Asuna to finish her bath. “Today was tiring,” he muttered to himself as he fell onto the bed in a sprawl.

 

His thoughts on her were a confused mess. Why was he getting such a confused jumble of feelings when he thought of her? She was his friend and partner, right? They just worked well as a team, despite the fact that they had only known each other for about six weeks. Admittedly, they had been in each other’s presence almost twenty-four seven, but didn’t such good working relationships take longer?

 

Then he remembered the way she’d looked when she’d come to save his skin and his cheeks flushed. Why couldn’t he put a name to what he was feeling?

 

He looked up when he heard her leave where the bath was, only to turn his eyes away at her normal sleepwear, “I’m done,” she said. “It’s your turn, Kirito-kun.”

 

He got up sluggishly, hurrying into the bathroom, “Alright, I won’t take too long.”

 

She nodded, getting into bed.

 

He hastily, but quietly, closed the door behind him and took a deep breath. Why had he reacted like that to her long shirt and shorts? He’d seen her in that many times, and it made no sense to him that he was reacting to such a sight now. He took another deep breath to calm himself.

 

He could sort it out later.

 

 

* * *

The evening was peaceful, like what one would expect for a small coastal village by the sea. The residents going home to a well-earned rest, with the sound of the waves crashing on the beach lulling them into sleep, and forgetting the concerns that would return when they awoke.

 

The war between the two elven races was growing, but it had not reached this location yet. The fighting was still centered around the larger cities and castles. More important targets than a village that was far removed from everything else

 

There was little need for soldiers in a quiet area like this, so a militia drawn from the villagers was all the village had. It did have a militia that was made of strong craftsmen, trained by and let by an old elf who had retired from the army, but it was still only a militia. Security was less of a concern, with closing the gates of the palisade more for the purpose of keeping wild animals from wandering in during the night.

 

However, a handful of guards were still posted to keep watch. Both to warn the inhabitants of any approaching danger and to keep watch over the docks that were less protected. Lacking the small earthen mound the palisade around their housing district was built into and being far more vulnerable as they were, as well as to look out for approaching storms so that they can move to prevent damage to the boats that were the lifeblood of the community. And to possibly keep any night owls who were too adventurous out of trouble after a long evening at the village bar.

 

There was nothing to indicate to anyone that this night would be any different, just another long and boring watch with little to get excited about. Unfortunately, this night would be different from the norm, and the peace was shattered by the calls to alert and the clashing of weapons.

 

Kirito snapped awake at the sound of the jarring crash that shook the house he and his party had been given for their stay. The commotion being raised outside caused him to roll off the bed and onto his feet. It hadn’t been the window… and the rooms supposed to be soundproof, so where…?

 

He barely had time to bring out and draw [Dark Sun] from his inventory before the door burst open.

 

He barely managed to parry a strike from a two-handed sword as Asuna also rolled out of the bed and had her [Chivalric Rapier] out. A second strike from his attacker, and he struggled to keep his attacker from pressing down as Asuna slid in from behind to thrust her rapier through the neck of the mob, killing it with a critical hit.

 

“Um, Kirito-kun,” she looked up at him a moment later.

 

“Yeah?” he turned to her, now that they had a moment to breathe. He could hear the sounds of battle coming from the ruined walls of the kitchen, making him think that it was a miracle that the house hadn’t collapsed on their heads yet.

 

“Rooms and houses are usually soundproof, right?” she asked, looking up at him, “And, aren’t they also usually [Immortal Objects]?”

 

He blinked, “Yes...?”

 

Then…” she paused, looking out the hole in the wall, “What’s going on?”

 

That was a question that he just could not answer. “I have no idea, but it sounds like trouble.” He said

 

He turned to look back into the ruined bedroom and then out the hole in the wall, “Normally a locked room like ours was, is like a…” he furrowed his brow as he tried to figure out what the right words were, “Mini safe zone? That’ll do for now.” He shook his head, “Anyway, it should be impossible to force the door open, unlike IRL where a door would eventually give way with enough force.” He took her wrist and pulled her through the kitchen and out the hole. “So, no, I have no idea what’s going on.”

 

Shouts and screams assaulted their ears the moment they stepped out of the not quite ruined house. They had to fight the urge to cover their ears. The once peaceful village was in disarray, with groups of Dark and Forest Elves fighting in the streets.

 

It was total chaos. Some of the houses looked like they were ready to fall down; some were on fire and some, like the one they’d just exited had a hole in the wall but otherwise seemed to still have some structural integrity left.

 

Kirito’s look of stunned confusion and shock swiftly morphed to anger, his eyes narrowing. His mouth shut with a sharp click, and his lips peeled back in a snarl. His eyes began to light up with tiny flecks of gold slowly beginning to overtake the ebony in his irises.

 

Moments later, he’d disappeared into the thick of the fighting, with Asuna following him.

 

Lux would later tell them that watching them in action was like watching an exotic dance. They needed no words between them, their actions so coordinated and synchronized as to seem choreographed. He would bat away a weapon and she would go in with a killing strike. She would distract and he would kill. Sometimes they were back to back, not even needing the other’s help.

 

After what felt like forever, the tide began to turn; the Forest Elves had been thinned out enough that they and their allies once again had some breathing room. The full moon peeking out from behind the clouds visible on the floor’s horizon gave them all the first real glimpse of just what had happened in the village before they’d awoken.

 

“Thank you for helping,” it was a female wearing white and blue not-quite armor with long braided purple hair that looked mor4e blue than the normal purple, “I’m Ruto, what should we do now?”

 

Without even realizing it, Kirito started barking orders as Asuna looked around, “Set up several squads of six,” he ordered in a voice that would carry. “I want at least one team putting out those fires, and at least one squad searching for survivors. If we can, we should have an equal amount of teams on both tasks.” He turned at a firm tug on the sleeve of the [Cloak of Midnight], “Yes Asuna?”

 

“There’s fighting at the gates,” she said, pointing in their direction. “We need to go there and back them up.”

 

He followed her finger with a hard gaze, “I think you’re right.” He turned back to Ruto, “You have your orders, get moving. There’s still work to be done.”

 

He took a step before turning back to Ruto, “What about Kizmel and the other human girl that was with us when we arrived?”

 

“They already headed to the gate [Commander],” she replied, turning to the other elves, “You heard him, get moving!”

 

 

* * *

They were a whirl of constant movement as they got closer to the gate, noticing Lux and Kizmel fighting back to back. The [Forest Elves] had thinned, but the two showed signs that they had been fighting hard to hold this location and keep more from entering the village. With just a nod between them, Kirito and Asuna joined with their other two party members.

 

“Are you two alright?” Kirito asked, killing the [Forest Elf] that had been fighting Lux.

 

“We’re fine [Commander],” Kizmel grinned as she double teamed the last of the [Forest Elves] that had bogged them down with a little help from Asuna.

 

Kirito’s hand shot out, taking hold of her shoulder as Lux began to wobble, “You alright there Lux?”

 

“Not enough sleep I think, Kirito-sama,” she yawned widely, “What is up with this [Campaign]?”

 

He chuckled nervously, putting the uncomfortable title out of his mind, for the moment, “I think Asuna-hime and I might have broken it when we saved Kizmel’s life,” his eyes slid over to the Elf who was looking for more [Forest Elves] to fight. “Not that we’d have done any differently if we were to start it over again.”

 

Lux nodded, “I see, this quest is hard.”

 

“Not as hard as you would think,” he relaxed into a Fool’s Guard, his sword pointing at the ground, “Asuna, how about you? Do you know what time it is?”

 

“I’m tired because it’s the middle of the night, but wide awake now” she reported promptly, her eyes going to a corner of her H.U.D, “It’s only half past midnight? I thought it would be later, with the fighting seeming to have taken so long.”

 

“That late huh?” He asked, shaking his head before moving on. “And as for the fighting seeming to take longer than it does, it happens. I don’t know why, though.”

 

“Good, that means we are ready to continue.” Asuna said. When Kirito paused, ready to hand out orders to Lux and Kizmel, another voice interrupted.

 

“I want to know what you were thinking, not reporting that Scouting Party or camp to me.” That voice just dripped arrogance.

 

As one, the four turned; the [Dark Elf] glaring at Kirito was a head taller than Kizmel, his skin a shade or two lighter than hers. His purple hair was so dark it looked black, even in the silvery light of the full moon as it began to hide behind the clouds again.

 

“Excuse me?” the human boy almost snarled, “I seem to recall that you weren’t here when we got back, or by the time we went to bed. And unless you have a damage report or something similar, aren’t you needed elsewhere?”

 

The elf snorted, his cocky smirk enough to irritate the young [Commander], “I came to inform you,” he spat, “That our ships have been attacked and that the wall protecting the residential quadrant of the village has collapsed. The Enemy has come in great numbers tonight. You can either defend the village or the docks, you can’t do both.”

 

Kirito’s eyes narrowed, “You can’t, we can,” he said, his voice ice cold, turning to his other two Party members, “Kizmel, Lux, I know it’s a lot to ask, but do you feel you’ll be able to repel the elves in the village while Asuna and I go to defend the port?”

 

Lux nodded, “It’s not going to be easy, but…” She then grinned. “We’ll certainly try.”

 

“I’m confident we can do it, [Commander],” Kizmel said.

 

Kirito nodded, “Then the two of you are to head there now,” he turned to the new elf, “You are to guard this gate to make sure they don’t try to get in this way again.”

 

He turned to his partner, “Asuna.”

 

“We are to go defend the ships,” she replied with a smirk, “We’ll reinforce the militia that is already there and to make sure none of the ships in port sink.”

 

“Time for us to get to work then.” He said “Kizmel, Lux, be careful.”

 

“You as well, [Commander],” Lux gave a playful salute, before trotting after Kizmel.

 

Kirito looked at Asuna, who only nodded in response. “Time for us to do our part,” she said as she started making her way to the docks, with Kirito following and keeping an eye out for any [Forest Elves] that might be around and waiting to attack them.

 

 

* * *

Their fighting was almost like a dance as they swept through the mobs on the way to the docks, their objective would not begin until they got there, but they’d already killed nearly thirty elves between them.

 

“Why did this have to happen tonight?” he growled, punching an elf after parrying a downward axe strike with his sword.

 

“Since when was this quest ever supposed to be easy?” Asuna retorted, sweeping the mob’s legs out from under him.

 

In another moment, Kirito beheaded the elf, “I don’t know why I thought this [Campaign] wasn’t going to change anymore,” he huffed, blocking a strike from yet another elf.

 

He smirked when the tip of Asuna’s rapier broke through his neck. “I see you’re point,” he conceded, “Can you check if this part of the quest is timed or if there are a specific number of elves we need to kill?”

 

It took her a few moments, “It says absolutely nothing.”

 

“That’s bullshit,” he grumbled as he dodged the strike of another [Forest Elf]. “How are we supposed to know when we are finished if we aren’t told what the requirements are?”

 

“You’re asking me, why?” She caught the mob’s attention, dancing out of range. “At a very vague guess, I’d say we’re supposed to last the night, and that they’ll retreat with the dawn.”

 

He hissed, “I’d not put any money on that…”

 

 

* * *

Lux groaned as she blocked the sword what what had to be the tenth Elf, “How can Kirito-sama call this easy?” she panted. At least it was getting easier. The mobs’ red cursors were not a dark purple anymore.

 

Kizmel beheaded another, “Are you alright Lux?”

 

“I think so?” the human girl checked her HP, “I don’t need a potion yet, at least.”

 

Kizmel nodded.

 

 

* * *

Kirito panted as he destroyed yet another mob, “I really hate this quest now…”

 

He turned at a gasp, his eyes widening when he saw that his partner had fallen, “Are you alright?” he called.

 

“I think I tripped,” she called back, rolling to her feet, deflecting her own enemy’s axe.

 

He took his chance, running the mob through with his sword. “Try not to trip again please.”

 

“No promises,” she stuck her tongue out at him playfully before turning her attention back to the chaos encompassing the port. “I see a few on Moses’s boat.”

 

“Well, that’s not good,” he growled, “We should go clear it of enemy mobs.”

 

Asuna nodded, “We should go then.” She sprinted dock and up the gangplank.

 

He was right behind her, “Maybe I should not have split the Party…”

 

“Kirito-kun,” her voice snapped him out of his thoughts, “Don’t doubt yourself. You trust Lux and Kizmel to be able to handle themselves don’t you?”

 

He nodded, “I do.”

 

“Then you should believe that they can handle protecting the village,” the moon began to peek out from behind the clouds again, “You usually aren’t this doubtful.”

 

He bit the inside of his lip, “You’re right again, Asuna-hime,” he finally agreed, following her up the gangplank. They wouldn’t let a single ship sink if they could prevent it.

 

 

* * *

Lux knocked back the latest elf she’d come across, killing it. Looking around to make sure the area was clear for the moment, she pulled out a potion, downing it as fast as she could without choking. “I think I hate this quest.”

 

Kizmel rolled her eyes, “Are you sure, you seemed quite happy to have the [Commander’s] help.”

 

Lux went red, “It’s not like that Kizmel, I don’t like Kirito-sama that way!” she sighed, “Besides, even if I did, he’s already spoken for. I’m sure he and Asuna-sama will be happy when they…”

 

Kizmel gave the girl a grin, “I’m going to go check on the gate.”

 

 

* * *

Kirito deflected the last elf’s strike and stepped into his guard, thrusting [Dark Sun] through the mob’s neck. “That seems to be the last of them, for the moment anyway,” he panted, turning to his partner.

 

She nodded, “Should we check on Lux and Kizmel?” she wondered aloud as she pulled a potion from her inventory and held it out for him to take.

 

His eyes trailed up to where the HP Bars of their party were displayed, “They both have plenty of HP left,” he took the potion, giving her one of his own in return, “But it wouldn’t hurt to go check.”

 

They both took a moment to replenish their own HP Bars before leaving the ship.

 

 

* * *

A ping on her Quest Log brought Asuna up short, “Kirito-kun.”

 

He turned, “Yes?”

 

“It looks like we won’t need to worry about the port for a bit,” she chewed on her lip, “If you want to go check on Lux and Kizmel, we can.”

 

“Then perhaps we should,” he looked out over the village and port before turning back to his partner, “I do not mean to doubt them, but I also don’t want either to die.”

 

He ducked his head. Looking away, “Especially since we don’t know what Kizmel is.”

 

 

* * *

 

She whimpered as she watched her fingertip gain a slight blue tint. What was the system doing to her? Was it starting to see her as something that didn’t belong?

 

With a determination she’d seen only in Papa and Mama, she shook the worrying thought away and turned her eyes back to her older sister. The growing younger had finally stopped, but she could also tell that the errors wouldn’t stop.

 

She needed to be strong for her sister. Even if her older sister didn’t know she existed.

 

 

* * *

 

Yui’s mind was blank, there was something she was supposed to be doing, wasn’t there? Now if only she could remember…

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito turned when he heard the pounding of footfalls. It was the elf from earlier: Ruto. “Yes?”

 

“The last wave has arrived,” Ruto seemed to bite her lip, “You are needed [Commander].”

 

His eyes widened, “Asuna,” he called, “It’s time to go!”

 

“I’m right behind you.”

 

 

* * *

 

Lux cursed as she took of the wrist of the mob in front of her. Her HP was nearing half, and she was so tired…

 

Kizmel hissed angrily when she took an elf from behind, “Lux, keep your mind on the battle!” she scolded the young human girl.

 

Lux hopped back slightly, rubbing her arm under her shield, “Sorry about that Kizmel,” she pushed off, taking another of the elves. But there were so many of them still that she wondered if they were even putting a dent in their numbers. Not enough sleep, on top the never ending waves of enemy mobs was making it hard to concentrate on what she needed to be doing.

 

The sun started to peek over the edge of Aincrad and something made Lux look up, towards the now busted village gate.

 

Her eyes widened when she saw, in the sea of never ending mobs: Kirito and Asuna were standing there, swords at the ready, sunrise at their backs.

 

 

* * *

 

The next half hour was a blur as Kirito and Asuna mopped up most of the rest of the Mobs. All three of the human Players were panting and trembling by the time the last of the [Forest Elves] had been slain.

 

“We did it, [Commander],” Kizmel smiled, “But then, we’ve always had faith in your abilities. Why don’t you three go get some rest?”

 

She turned away from them, “There’s someone I need to speak to.”

 

 

* * *

 

“It’s about time you got here, Ramses,” Kizmel spoke in an annoyed tone, “I was looking for you all day yesterday.”

 

“Forgive me, Lady Kizmel,” the male [Dark Elf] Ramses replied with a smirk, “You don’t usually come looking for my humble self.”

 

“As conceited as ever I see,” she growled, “You are late.”

 

Ramses’s smirk widened, “Oh?” he asked snidely, “Aren’t you the one escorting a pair of delicate, little humans up to the Ninth Floor? I was so sure that you would die fighting those barbaric [Forest Elves] on the Third.”

 

“I’m stronger than that and you know it!” she snarled angrily, “Why do I even put up with you?”

 

“Maybe because you’re in love with me?” he sneered, bringing his hand up to brush the bangs out of her eyes, “I was surprised when you came to my aid.”

 

“Ch,” she glared, this wasn’t the Ramses she remembered. When he spoke, he felt... off, artificial.

 

“Touch me again and I will cut your arm off!” she hissed, “Anyway, the [Commander] has need of your expertise.”

 

She turned away to return to the village for breakfast but stopped, looking over her shoulder, “Try not to annoy him, or his partner,” she smirked, “He might just kill you if you pull this attitude with Asuna. If she doesn’t kill you first, that is,” she laughed as she left the stunned [Dark Elf] on his own.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito and Asuna had barely made it to a room in Nephta’s Inn (one of the only buildings to survive the siege the night before), before the both fell haphazardly on the bed. They were asleep before their heads even hit their shared pillow.

 

Down the hall, Lux had also fallen into bed asleep.

 

 

* * *

 

Kizmel checked on her three companions and nodded to herself. They were not trained soldiers and lacked the training and discipline of such, so their falling asleep almost immediately was expected. She remembered how Captain Heathcliff had drilled the Royal Guard mercilessly in training, doing simulated battles and then going around to not so gently wake soldiers who had fallen asleep after the adrenaline had faded.

 

It was a common aftereffect, the body being exhausted once a perception of safety was obtained. Princess Mercury had called it ‘ego depletion’, the effect of the body to become stingy with the hormones and chemicals it produced to maintain alertness after such a situation was over and they apparently no longer needed it. Something that can be overcome with sufficient discipline, but it wasn’t uncommon for rest and watch rotations to be implemented once it was clear no further attack was forthcoming in the immediate future.

 

Fortunately, their victory in this battle was complete, and she didn’t see another large attack in the immediate future. The entire attack hadn’t been bad tactically, with the night attack and having split forces trying to attack the village and its port at one time. By all rights, their forces were too few to protect both, and it was unwise to attempt. The [Commander] had been exceptionally reckless in trying, and she knew that it was only their sheer individual power and strength which allowed them to even risk attempting. That it was successful didn’t change the matter.

 

By all rights, they should have been forced to flee or die fighting. Skill and strength may play a not insignificant role in battle, but numbers did matter. After a certain point, it didn’t matter the skill and strength of the defending force if the attacking force could simply overwhelm them with numbers.

 

And further, something about the entire battle seemed wrong to her. Why would such a large attack happen to such a remote location? There was nothing of any real strategic value in the area that she knew of. The facts that it was an overwhelming night assault, the forcing them to choose whether to save the village or the port after the first assault, and the lack of any reinforcements until the immediate aftermath… what was going on?

 

The lack of reinforcements could be explained by them having to learn of the attack and move here post-haste, or being delayed by another group of [Forest Elves], true. But none of the reinforcements showed the signs of having fought, or having force marched to the village. They were completely fresh and rested.

 


	12. A Dream of Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even a dream can ignite a spark of hope.

Cardinal attached [Sacred Thorn] to Player ID: Persephone and set the conditions, barring sudden calamity, for it to be unlocked within the next few floors. “Now that that’s done, perhaps Master will stop panicking,” she muttered, moving onto [Divine Right], “Almost done. I should have this one detangled, and ready to go soon as well.” Still, there was just one question left: Should she clue her Master in on whom the [Princess] was?  


* * *

Asuna fell to her knees as the Boss disintegrated, she felt like she’d just run several marathons back to back and just couldn’t get her breath back. She looked up when she felt someone touch her shoulder, “Oh, Kirito-kun, it’s just you,” she was barely able to get out.  
  
  
“Are you alright, Asu-hime?” he sounded concerned, “You look very pale.”  
  
  
“…I feel like I can’t breathe,” she admitted, leaning into his hand.  
  
  
His eyes narrowed, “That’s not good.”  
  
  
She almost toppled over in a dead faint.  
  
  
Kirito hissed, his hand fisting in the material of her shirt as he pulled her sideways as she slumped and held her against his side. He opened his menu as a few of the other Players went up the stairs. Could she be sick? He didn’t like that possibility at all.  
  
  
If she was sick, then his hands were tied.  
  
  
Kizmel melted out of the shadows, causing the small number of still loitering Players to jump, “[Commander], what’s wrong?”  
  
  
He shook his head, “I don’t know, Kizmel.”  
  
  
The Elf’s eyes narrowed as she felt Asuna’s skin, “She’s ice cold.” Why was she cold when the [Commander] had been burning up? Unless she was sick with something else?  
  


* * *

  
  
Heathcliff’s eyes narrowed as he watched NPC Kizmel interact with his young protégé, that wasn’t how he’d programmed her to behave. Yes, she acted almost exactly the way he remembered the real Kizmel acting, but there were differences.  
  
  
He watched as she helped Kirito pick his partner up, helping him to balance and taking care to make sure that the girl wouldn’t be dropped.  
  
  
He really needed to talk to them both before they left.  
  


* * *

  
  
When she opened her eyes, she didn’t recognize where she was, it was so dark and cold. Turning, she could see two young children, cut off from the world.  
  
  
The younger of the two looked like she was on the verge of freezing to death. She couldn’t see the girl’s face, but something about her was familiar and that chestnut hair…  
  
  
She couldn’t see the older girl’s face either, but her long hair was the same color as her Partner’s.  
  
  
“Please…” her head whipped around, the younger had spoken, barely above a whisper, “Mama, Papa… Save us…”  
  
  
She felt her heart break, why did it feel like this girl was pleading with her specifically? Who were her parents? “Don’t worry, we will,” she tried to reassure them both before her vision faded away.  
  


* * *

  
  
It had taken some doing, but he’d managed to follow them without being noticed, and so he watched as his young [Commander] fretted over his Partner, Player Asuna. It was, cute, the way the boy seemed to not be able to sit still. It highlighted that the one he intended to be his protégé was still only a teenager.  
  
  
And everything with Sword Art Online would take that from him. He sympathized with how the young man would see it. He had lost his family years ago, and had felt lost afterward before throwing himself into his work to distract himself from the pain.  
  
  
By the time this game, this Simulation, was over, Kirito, and all the other children will have lost this innocence. Not all would be hardened soldiers, but enough would be that his goal will have been met. He had already mourned their loss.  
  
  
He felt remorse, for tricking them all. Or, at least he thought he did. Every single child who had entered this place would not be a child once it was all over, regardless of their physical age. And regardless of if they became active soldiers in his Princess’ Army after everything was said and done.  
  
  
He wasn’t here for the boy though. He was here for Kizmel.  
  


* * *

  
  
“Well?” Kizmel asked the Healer.  
  
  
He shook his head, “It’s not magical, but…”  
  
  
“But what?” The female elf snapped, turning to watch the young [Commander] sit on the bed, Asuna’s head in his lap.  
  
  
“Her reserves, they are astronomically high, I haven’t seen any that high since…”  
  
  
“Since the Princess,” Kizmel agreed.  
  
  
“Excuse me.”  
  
  
Both elves turned, “…Captain Heathcliff?” Kizmel asked in shock.  
  
  
“Kizmel,” he replied, giving her a nod.  
  
  
For just a moment, she didn’t know what to say, “Captain, what…” she bit her lip, “What is going on?”  
  
  
“What do you think is going on?” Heathcliff asked.  
  
  
Kizmel frowned. “This place, it’s so much like Aincrad,” she began. “But there are things that are just wrong. The beasts that inhabit it shatter when they die, some places aren’t where they should be, and others… they simply don’t look the way they should.” She continued to explain the inconsistencies she had noticed, not noticing Heathcliff’s expression turn to shock, and then thoughtfulness. “So I ask again, Captain, _what is going on_?”  
  
  
“It can’t be… they were never designed to last this…” He looked at the Dark Elf. “Kizmel, what is the last thing you remember?” _It can’t be… but Cardinal did mention a connection to the palace_ , he thought. _Could that connection be…?_  
  
  
“Before coming to awareness, or since I have?” Kizmel asked.  
  
  
“Before.”  
  
  
“You had placed myself and Tilnel into stasis chambers,” she said. “The palace was under attack… Lady Beryl was… that, that _thing_ controlling her… oh no, the Princess!”  
  
  
“Kizmel, _calm yourself_.” Heathcliff ordered and gave her a moment to do so. “I don’t know how… but I think you might have been pulled into this... simulation.”  
  
  
“...Simulation?” she repeated dumbly, “This is a simulation?”  
  
  
He sadly nodded, “The Princess died, I know that for sure now.” His eyes traveled to the Infirmary, finally landing on the two human Players on the bed. “This simulation was supposed to allow me to find her, well, a chance to find her. It is likely that she was reborn within the last twenty years.”  
  
  
“What happened?” Kizmel asked, clearly pushing her emotions, her shock, to the back of her mind.  
  
  
Heathcliff gave a sad sigh. “I can’t confirm it, necromancy is far from a specialty of mine, but it looked like she committed suicide,” he explained. “To avoid capture by the enemy? I don’t know, but she was dead when I found her. Her Majesty used the Crystal to seal away the entity that had possessed Lady Beryl at the cost of her life, while placing the souls of all who fell in that battle into the cycle of reincarnation.” He closed his eyes. “The Empire’s gone, Kizmel. It has been for at least ten thousand years.”  
  
  
“Ten thousand… the stasis pods weren’t designed to last that long!” Kizmel exclaimed.  
  
  
Heathcliff nodded. “And the fact that you’re still alive is a miracle,” he acknowledged. “The fact that you’re here… I might have an explanation for that.”  
  
  
“And what would that be, sir,” Kizmel asked. Her voice was in the cooly professional tone that clearly said that she wanted to say more, but was holding it back.  
  
  
_Probably due to us being in public_ , Heathcliff mused. _My memories aren’t complete, but they showed that she was always professional when on duty_. He pushed those thoughts to the side. “One that I cannot confirm, but there is a connection to the Lunar Palace, showing that some of its systems are still functioning,” he said. “But it is possible that your presence here is due to a connection through them. How? I do not know, but it is possible from what I can remember.”  
  
  
He saw the understanding in Kizmel’s eyes. “So you are a reincarnation yourself,” she said.  
  
  
He nodded.  
  
  
“You fell in the battle?” She asked.  
  
  
“No, I did not,” Heathcliff admitted. “But that is for another time. The why’s of when I was reincarnated in this era could be due to Her Majesty, or it could simply be coincidence. Without further knowledge, it is a philosophical question at best.”  
  
  
Kizmel nodded. “What would you have me do, sir?” She asked.  
  
  
“Continue as you have,” Heatcliff said. “Kirito is one to bear watching, and is one whom I intend to make my protégé. Make sure he survives. Also, keep an eye out to who might be the Princess’ reincarnation. If she is old enough, it is likely that she would have found herself drawn to this, even though she has not awakened and might not understand why.”  
  
  
Kizmel nodded and got thoughtful. “Captain,” she said. “I can carry those tasks out, but I might have completed the second. I cannot confirm, but I think I know who the Princess might be.”  
  
  
Heathcliff’s eyes bored into her. “Tell me,” he ordered.  
  


* * *

  
  
Asuna coughed weakly, relaxing into the caress of her partner’s hand on her hair. “I hate getting sick…”  
  
  
“And I don’t?” Kirito asked almost sarcastically with a sardonic grin. “You should just rest.” he said, gently brushing her long bangs out of her face.  
  
  
“You won’t leave will you?” she asked breathlessly, her eyes closing at his gentle touch.  
  
  
“Oh course not.”  
  


* * *

  
  
He took a deep breath as he teleported to where he had Cardinal working to get rid of the ‘Trojan’, the Curse. “Cardinal.”  
  
  
“Yes Master?” she turned, looking up into his eyes.  
  
  
“Have you made any headway in identifying the Princess?” He asked.  
  
  
Cardinal nodded. “I have,” she said. “I posit that it is Player ID: Asuna, at a ninety-six percent chance of it being so, even after accounting for two standard deviations.”  
  
  
Kayaba nodded and sharpened his gaze. “And why did I have to find out from other sources?” He asked.  
  
  
“You didn’t ask,” she said simply.  
  
  
Kayaba resisted the urge to facepalm, knowing that this was one of the ways that the AI acted out on her displeasure of what was happening to Yui and Strea. She would do what was told and requested of her, but he had to directly ask her for things like this unless it was system related. Her recently passive-aggressive approach to it was frustrating. Understandable, but frustrating.  
  
  
“What about the connection to the moon?” He asked.  
  
  
“No changes,” she said. “It still remains, with only fluctuations in the data rates. I did isolate where the connection leads to here.”  
  
  
“NPC Kizmel, I know,” Kayaba said with a nod. “Leave her be until further notice. Now, I have some arrangements to to make.”  
  


* * *

  
  
Kayaba frowned as the Medicuboid disengaged five minutes later. “So, Kizmel survived, with Tilnel as a distinct possibility as well, then?” He mused. He knew exactly where they were, too.  
  
  
He grabbed his phone from the table and flicked it on. As he pulled up his contact list, he grumbled, wishing that the Senshi also used the communication spell instead of the communicators that Luna and her compatriot insisted on. Really, those things were archaic when Aincrad, the real one, had been under construction. The only reason they persisted and were not phased out was due to how robust they were and their doing what they were designed for very well.  
  
  
Now if they were only compatible with the communications methods of the current era...  
  
  
He had not expected to find his Princess so soon, but he was glad for it. Now he could focus on the other important things, like starting Kirito’s training, and getting the [Unique Skills] debugged.  
  
  
Really, he had to get in contact with Pluto, who he knew was awake. He’d have to make an appointment to meet her. He couldn’t leave the hospital, it was part of the deal he’d made, but at least he didn’t have to stay in his room hooked up.  
  
  
Fortunately, he had long since determined who the Senshi were. Not with complete certainty, but his previous life had been the Captain of Her Majesty’s Royal Guard for a reason. Compared to making Sword Art Online as a training simulation using the current era’s technology and lack of magic in it, and determining who the Senshi were in reality was child’s play in comparison.  
  
  
That, and she had been a part of the early development of SAO, ostensibly to get clothing design experience as an intern. She got too many of the fashions of that period designed for SAO to too high a degree of accuracy to be sheer coincidence. The fact that she did more than that, even helping with some of the lore design, only confirmed it.  
  
  
Had he not had his previous life’s memories, he would have accepted it as serendipity. With them, and Captain Heathcliff’s experience, he knew better than to believe in coincidence.  
  


* * *

  
  
Setsuna paused when she heard the phone in her purse ring. Who could be calling her now? If it wasn’t the feeling that told her that she had to take the call, she would ignore it, but she had that gut feeling and she learned to trust it. She retrieved her phone as she looked over her companions, “Something tells me I need to take this call girls, feel free to order something to eat if I’m not back soon,” she stood, leaving the table.  
  
  
Minako took a deep breath and let her head fall to the table top, “I wonder who that could be.”  
  
  
Makoto put her chin in the palm of her right hand as she leaned forward, “Shall we go listen in?”  
  
  
Minako sent her friend and teammate a cool glare, “We are not in middle school anymore Mako, not only is it not appropriate, but it’s _rude_.”  
  
  
“Boo, you’re no fun anymore,” Makoto pouted.  
  
  
Rei rolled her eyes, “We aren’t kids anymore, we need to act like the adults that we are supposed to be, right Ami?”  
  
  
It took Ami a whole minute to look up from her minicomputer, “What was that Rei?” Surreptitiously, she turned her laptop off and closed it. “Oh, right, Mina and Rei are right Mako, we are grown women and can’t act that way anymore.”  
  
  
Setsuna chuckled at the comment as she headed outside to take the call. Minako had risen well to her leadership role, allowing for the others to remain young just a bit more. The fact that she managed it at her own personal and psychological cost was known, and if she could, she would have the young woman take some time off, but as things were, that would be unwise.  
  
  
Minako was the only other one aside from herself that Haruka and Michiru would listen to, knowing that she had been active as long as they had, if not longer. They might not do what she wants, but they would hear her out, and she normally didn’t take too much issue if they didn’t do more than follow more than the spirit of her wishes.  
  
  
The fact that she killed a high ranking commander of the Dark Kingdom’s forces on her own and without backup, as well as her acknowledgement that she _wasn’t_ in charge of them helped. That all she requested is that they keep the collateral damage down by doing directed and surgical attacks against the Dark Kingdom’s energy storage operations, knowing that their powers weren’t suited to keeping civilian casualties down, also helped.  
  
  
Warehouses and facilities can be rebuilt and replaced. Lives could not, and if they had to take the field in a place with a lot of civilians, then things had gotten bad enough that avoiding civilian casualties was a lost cause already.  
  
  
She stepped outside before accepting the call. The additional noise provided by the crowds would be of use in obscuring the contents of the discussion. “Moshi moshi, Meioh Setsuna speaking,” she said.  
  
  
“ _Pluto_.”  
  
  
Her eyes widened. “I know you, don’t I?” she asked, her eyes narrowing as she leaned back against the glass window of the cafe, her voice quiet, almost dark, she recognized that voice…  
  
  
“...Captain?” Could this be? “Captain Heathcliff?”  
  
  
Why would he be calling her now?  
  
  
“Indeed,” the voice on the other end of the call confirmed. “I have found the Princess. In-”  
  
  
“In Sword Art Online,” she confirmed. “I determined that she would go through it via the Time Gates, but I am prohibited from disclosing the specifics of that knowledge.”  
  
  
“I am aware, that you can do so only cryptically at the best of times, something Her Majesty has occasionally complained about,” he said with a note of humor in his voice. “Not that she relieved the restrictions placed on your position that her predecessors set. They had reasons, good ones, to do so.”  
  
  
Setsuna had to smile at the comment. “So, you are informing me of this, or for something else?” She enquired. She knew the Captain from her previous life’s memories well enough to know that he wouldn’t be directly contacting her like this for something like this. He knew her powers and the limitations placed on them.  
  
  
“To the best of my knowledge, the Stasis Pods are still working,” Heathcliff sad. “We need to meet personally to go over the details, but I know of at least one survivor from that era, and a potential second one.”  
  
  
Setsuna was shocked at the revelation. She knew that she didn’t have her previous life’s experience, and using the Time Gates to train them only went so far, but for something like this to be true…  
  
  
“Have you confirmed this?” She asked hopefully.  
  
  
“I have, as well as I could.” Came the immediate reply with the caveat that he was clearly hoping that it was the truth as well.  
  
  
“Who?” Setsuna asked.  
  
  
“I have confirmed to the best of my knowledge that Her Highness’ bodyguard is alive,” Heathcliff replied. “We will have to meet to go over further details."  
  
  
Setsuna tried to remember the name that went with the face that flashed before her eyes. “When would you like to meet?”  
  
  
“As soon as possible,” Heathcliff said. “Outside of going over some further details, I would also like to discuss some ways to help you and the others remain… discreet. I should not have discovered you identities as easily as I had.”  
  
  
Her cheeks flushed and she lowered her head to hide her face in embarrassment, “I don’t see much of a problem with you knowing, but yes, if you were able to figure it out then we haven’t been as careful as we should be.” She bit her lip. “Can you come to a meeting or do we have to come to you?”


	13. And the World Keeps Turning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here are some more Outside Adventures.

  
Shinkawa Kyouji pulled his scarf tighter around his neck. He hated January with a passion. Why did it have to be so cold? He brought his gloved hands to his face and blew into them. It had only been two months since his older brother had been caught in the Terrorist Attack that SAO had been turned into and he was already feeling the pressure.  
  
  
  
“I hate the cold,” he grumbled as he opened the door to the “Dicey Cafe” and headed for the bar.  
  
  
  
The owner of the little Bar/Cafe was a victim, just like his brother, and the man’s wife was doing a good job of keeping the place up. Kathy Mills was pretty in a plain sort of way, but Kyouji found that she was very nice and was a very good listener, “Some coffee, please, Mrs. Mills.” he gave her a tired smile as he sat at the bar.  
  
  
  
“How are you this afternoon Kyouji?” she asked, “French Vanilla as usual?”  
  
  
  
“Tired,” he replied, his eyes landing on the TV behind the counter.  
  
  
  
“-and five more victims are now in intensive care, their nervous systems severely compromised as they woke from Sword Art Online, it is still unknown if any of them will regain the ability to live a normal life-”  
  
  
  
Kyouji put his head on the counter, “Can’t they report on something else for a change? This disaster began two months ago now.”  
  
  
  
Kathy sighed as she placed his mug in front of him, “I agree, I hate this waiting game, and have no idea what Kayaba is doing,” she said. “At least they aren’t dying though.”  
  
  
  
“You mean not in this bunch,” Kyouji replied bitterly, picking up the mug and taking a sip. “That first month was the worst…”  
  
  
  
She chuckled gently, “I think it was for us all, all those people dying…”  
  
  
  
“Actually dying you mean,” he took another sip.  
  
  
  
“So then, how has school been for you?”  
  
  
  
He set the cup down and let his head fall back to the countertop. “Horrible, Father expects me to take up the slack, with my brother trapped as he is.” He said despondently. “I mean, I can understand him wanting to make sure one of us can succeed him, but it’s like he’s already written Shouichi off.  
  
  
  
Kathy nodded, “It’s hard, especially when they just don’t understand.” She gave him a sympathetic look.  
  
  
  
“The worst part of it is, he _does_ understand,” Kyouji said bitterly. “It’s just that he just doesn’t seem to _care_.”  
  
  
  
Kathy winced at Kyouji’s tone. “Now, now, Kyouji, I’m sure he cares,” she said placatingly. “Some people just have a hard time showing it, and this entire thing isn’t helping matters and this might be how he’s coping.”  
  
  
  
Kyouji nodded, taking another sip of his coffee. “You noticed that they switched the name plates right?” He asked. “Their real names were replaced with the names they picked for themselves in SAO.”  
  
  
  
Kathy nodded. “Some of the names are quite silly, aren’t they?”  
  
  
  
“And some of them are… ominous,” Kyouji added. “My brother… his name is one of them. He always did like playing the villain in a game, but with SAO the way it is right now, I hope he’s not going to.”  
  
  
  
Kathy gave his shoulder a gentle pat, “We need to have faith in them.”  
  
  
  
The bell at the door chimed as someone entered. The cafe was unusually full this afternoon, with more than just the families of the victims of Sword Art Online. The way she was dressed, in a business suit but giving off an unpleasant vibe that caused Kathy’s eyes to narrow, Still, so long as she didn’t cause trouble, a customer was a customer.“How can I help you this afternoon?” she called, checking to see if there were any open tables or booths. Thankfully, there were a few. “Take a seat and I’ll come take care of you in a moment.”  
  
  
  
The customer took a seat, and Kathy sent one of the staff to her to take the order while she tended the bar. She kept a careful eye on the customer to reassure herself that no trouble was brewing, but didn’t make it obvious.  
  
  
  
The customer said nothing as she picked up a menu. Kathy still had a bad feeling about her, but there was no sign of trouble yet. Having dealt with the local Yakuza, not to mention growing up in Detroit before moving to Japan, meant that she had learned many of the warning signs of trouble brewing, and despite the lack of such here, she could feel it. Even if that didn’t suffice, she still had the scar on her side where a shrapnel from a bullet that shattered when hitting a sidewalk had hit her.  
  
  
  
The customer smirked as one of Kathy’s newer employees approached to take her order, “Ma’am, may I take your order?” There was an ominous pause.  
  
  
  
“Give me your Energy!” was the barely heard reply.  
  
  
  
The next moment, the customer, no, _Youma_ had one large, purple, misshapen hand around the girl’s throat.  
  
  
  
Kathy’s eyes widened as her employee gave a squeak, freezing in place as well. She had heard of the attacks, but they usually happened in Juuban, not all the way here, close to Akiba. For all the rumors and even footage that showed up on YouTube and NicoNico, few believed them to be more than urban legends, and now she had proof in front of her that they were not.  
  
  
  
Kathy took a deep breath to steady herself. _Think of the safety of the patrons,_ she thought. _If Youma exist, then Senshi do as well_. _Help’s on the way, but we need to get everyone out of the line of fire._ “Kyouji, I need you to help me get everyone to the basement.” She ordered. “Just get them moving away from the Youma.”  
  
  
  
The student nodded, gulping in nervousness. “I’ll try.” He slowly got up, leaving his half-finished cup of coffee where it was, “Where is the door to the basement?”  
  
  
  
 _He’s afraid, but keeping calm... ish,_ Kathy thought approvingly. She pointed to the door to the kitchen. “Through there and in the back, to the left.” She said as she reached under the counter. There was no weapon there, but there had to be something she could grab and use if necessary. A sturdy beer mug, one of the bottles not on the shelf, anything really. An improvised weapon was better than none, if only to delay it.  
  
  
  
The customers came first.  
  
  
  
“Kyouji, why are you still here?” She asked with a calm she certainly didn’t feel.  
  
  
  
The boy started and began to go and direct customers to the back and into the basement, or at least to the back alley so they can run.  
  
  
  
The feel of smooth wood was a surprise, and she instinctively grasped it. Slowly, she knelt behind the bar to get a look at what she was about to use. Her eyes went wide when she saw that it was a huge Battle Axe that she knew for certain that she’d never be able to pick up. A scream from one of the customers made her harden her eyes. The customers came first, so she had to at least _try._ What did her grandfather tell her?  
  
  
  
 _Don’t think you can’t do something until you try,_ she thought, hearing her grandfather’s voice in her mind. She took another deep breath, her grip tightening around the shaft and she tugged, somehow, pulling it from its place. She almost fell to the floor as she was pulled off balance, not by the weight, but by the size of the thing throwing her balance off. She regained her balance and footing and a glance at the Youma showed that it wasn’t paying attention to her.  
  
  
  
Slowly making her way around the bar, keeping her eyes on the Youma, she saw it make its way to a customer, who was frozen in fear. _She can’t be older than thirteen,_ she thought in the back of the mind. _Think of the customers._ Went through her mind as she moved, swinging the axe at the Youma.  
  
  
  
“Get away from her, bitch!” She shouted in English. The swing was clumsy, the axe blade missed its mark, but there was enough momentum behind the strike that it knocked the Youma off balance and away from the girl. “Move!” She shouted as she readied another strike. The Youma turned to face her and got the flat of an axe blade to the face for its trouble, causing it to stumble back.  
  
  
  
“ _You’re dealing with me_ ,” Kathy growled as she swung again. This time, the blade hit home and bit deeply into the Youma, causing it to fall to the floor with a scream. She pulled the axe free and swung again, and again. She kept swinging and chopping into the Youma until it crumbled into dust.  
  
  
  
Breathing heavily, she set the butt of the axe on the floor and looked down on the pile of dust. “You and your friends are now on the list of customers that we will refuse service to.” She said and turned to look around. She saw Kyouji standing at the kitchen door, staring at her in shock. She could see those customers who hadn’t been guided to the back staring, and several were staring over Kyouji’s shoulder as well.  
  
  
  
There was a stunned moment of silence before the customers who hadn’t made it into the kitchen burst into applause. “Nobody messes with our Madam Kathy Mills!” she heard one shout.  
  
  
  
Kathy blinked, starting to blush furiously, laughing nervously as the rest streamed out of the back. ”... I didn’t do that much…” she mumbled humbly as they all cheered for her. Carefully moving, she leaned the axe against the wall and then was startled by an impressed voice.  
  
  
  
“Well, haven’t seen a civilian kill a Youma in a while,” the voice said drily.  
  
  
  
She turned to see a young woman whose features she couldn’t quite make out, but from what she was wearing, like some pervert’s vision of the now rare to see sailor fuku, she knew that she was dealing with one of the rumored Sailor Senshi.  
  
  
  
One who was supposed to fight the Youma, had she not gotten to it first.  
  
  
  
“What took you so long?” She asked. “You’re late.”  
  
  
  
“Had to come halfway across Tokyo,” the Senshi said drily. “Got caught in traffic. Still, good job.”  
  
  
  
Kathy snorted at the bad joke and couldn’t stop herself from giggling. She did that. She had faced a monster and won. _Andrew is_ not _going to believe this when he gets out,_ she thought.  
  
  


* * *

Pluto watched as the woman continued to giggle, fully understanding why. It wasn’t due to the joke, but because she was still alive and was now letting the go of the fear. She knew how that was, considering that was how she reacted the first time she faced a Youma and dusted it. Her eyes turned to the axe the woman used, now leaning against the wall and reached for it, only to get her gloved hand zapped by it.

 

 

No injury, but she could recognize a warning ward when she saw one and knew that if she had continued to try and grab it, it would have reacted more violently. She thought she recognized it, or at least the type, but she’d have to check the Gates to be sure. But the fact that she still felt the warning shock, it was definitely powerful enough to hurt her even through the protections of her uniform.

 

 

Perhaps it was a surviving weapon from that era, passed down as an heirloom and having lasted this long. She knew of a few where that was the case, so it was far from impossible. But she would still check the Time Gates, as something about it was familiar to her.

 

 

“Miss?” She asked, trying to get the woman’s attention. “Miss…” She said more insistently.

 

 

“That’s Missus, _Missus_ Kathy Mills.” One of the bystanders said, deliberately mangling the English for Mrs., but showing some familiarity with American accents.

 

 

That just made Kathy laugh harder. She continued to do so for a few moments before getting herself under control. “Sorry,” she said. “But… I did that, didn’t I?”

 

 

Pluto smiled at her and nodded. “Yes, you did,” she said. “Again, I apologize for being late like that. They’re usually active in Juuban, so having to go all the way here is rare. I will have to let the others know so they can expand their patrol routes a little to see if the ones directing the Youma are relocating their operations, or simply branching out.”

 

 

Kathy nodded, “All right.” She turned to look at her new axe, “I wonder where this came from, it wasn’t under the bar this morning.” She shook her head and then turned back to Pluto. “Since you did come all the way here, can I get you anything?”

 

 

Pluto smiled “That would be lovely, _Missus_ Mills,” she said, causing Kathy to snort.

 

* * *

Pluto left the “Dicey Cafe” a few minutes later with a smile and a disposable Styrofoam cup of coffee in hand, “It’s good to know that at least one place will be safe if we can’t get here in time.” She said, taking a sip. “Youma and the Generals tend to avoid places where a civilian managed to kill one of their number, much like they avoid the OsaP jewelry store and its employees.”

 

 

The last time she saw civilian successfully fight and kill a Youma was when that one civilian girl who was friends with a regular target of the Dark Kingdom got caught off guard and had awakened her magic from the fear. It was unrefined, but the panic fueled power had killed the Youma before it could do anything. Given that she was an employee at that frequently targeted shop, the aforementioned OsaP, the Dark Kingdom had decided to stop using it as a convenient target.

 

 

It wasn’t as if they had a lack of other places to conduct their operations, or a lack of time, after all.

 

 

She took a sip of her coffee, and put her mind back to what she was supposed to be doing. She had a meeting with Captain Heathcliff in a few minutes. Perhaps she should cheat and use the Gates to make sure she got there on time? She shook her head at the unintended joke. “Now, where was this hospital again?”

 

 

She looked down at the notes she’d taken from her conversation with the man. Next time, she’d bring Minako with her. But right now, she wasn’t going there to talk about Senshi business, or the Princess’ location. She still had trouble believing that there might be survivors, and she would check the Time Gates to make sure.

 

 

She wondered how the stasis pods were even still working, and how long would they _keep_ _working_. Her memories of that time were spotty, and even with the Time Gates to help her fill in the blanks, there was only so much viewing the past could do. She knew that the magitech of that era was robust, but even then, the power systems should have failed long ago.

 

 

If there were indeed survivors, she needed to get them down post haste, or they wouldn’t be alive for much longer. Finishing her coffee, she threw the empty cup into a trashcan and stepped into an alley. Anyone following her would see nothing, as if she vanished.

 

 

It wouldn’t do for anyone to see her teleport, or worse, catch it on video to post online. Her investigations into SAO through mundane and magical means had indicated that the Dark Kingdom was at least aware of the internet and its utility. And the nature of what initially happened to players until Kayaba had locked it down had the marks of Zoicite or Kunzite’s handiwork. Jadeite was more direct, using a mix of brute force and subterfuge. Nephrite was more targeted in his operations, using surgical precision to get the most out of his operations with the least risk.

 

 

And it would also explain why the former two had not been seen since SAO began.

 

 

She needed to meet with Heathcliff first.

 

* * *

She walked into the hospital where Heathcliff was staying in her civilian persona of Setsuna Meiou, right on time. She had a small smile on her face as she walked to the front desk, “I have an appointment with Heathcliff.” She knew who he really was, Akihiko Kayaba, but all those trapped in SAO were identified by their screen names, and while he could get out, he was in the hospital under his screen name.

 

 

The nurse on duty handed her a pass, “Top floor, last room on the right,” the older woman gave her a smile.

 

 

Setsuna nodded, “Thank you.” She made her way to the elevators and boarded the first one available. A short time later, she exited the elevator on the appropriate floor and made her way to where Heathcliff said to meet him at.

 

 

He was, unsurprisingly already waiting. “Setsuna, it is nice to see you again.” He said.

 

 

Setsuna smiled. “It is a pleasure, sir,” she replied and then got a serious expression on her face. “You said something about the Princess’ bodyguard? I’m not sure I quite remember who that was outside of a dark elven native of Aincrad.”

 

 

He pulled out what had to be a screenshot from the game and unfolded the slip of paper, handing it to her, “It took about two months before it was noticed, but I discovered that there was a connection to SAO from the moon,” he said. “I tried to access it, but the connection was locked outside of any of the access methods I can remember from my life as Heathcliff. I also noticed an irregularity with one of the NPCs within SAO.” He placed what was clearly a screenshot from inside the game onto the table. “This is her.”

 

 

“She was not acting in the manner she was scripted to, even with accepted deviations taken into account. I was able to trace the connection to the NPC avatar and confronted her, and was able to determine that it was, in actuality, the Princess’ bodyguard, Kizmel, acting through the NPC avatar. She had specific memories that only the real one would be able to recall. And if she is able to interact with SAO through the connection, then it means that she is at least conscious enough to do so. And if she is alive, then it is possible that her sister, Tilnel, the Princess’ personal healer, is also alive.”

 

 

“Hmm, so you need someone to go retrieve them then?” Setsuna asked hopefully.

 

 

“If possible,” Kayaba said. “At the very least, I would like to know how much time we might have before recovery becomes an immediate necessity.”

 

 

“I’ll talk to the girls,” Setsuna said. “Mercury would jump at the chance of seeing functioning magitech, but I cannot make any promises. Just as I cannot simply use the Time Gates and tell you how long the machines will still work.”

 

 

Kayaba nodded. “I understand.” He knew that she could give an approximation at best. He was willing to bet that anything she said would amount to not as much time as he hoped anyway. The [Elven War Campaign] would be ending on the ninth floor, and with how fast the players were clearing the floors right now, that would be in a few weeks, at most.

 

 

If he asked, Setsuna might be able to tell him if Kizmel and Tilnel would last that long, since he wasn’t asking anything specific, just if they would need evacuation before that. But he didn’t need to. He knew getting Tilnel and Kizmel down was urgent.

 

 

He was sure, however, that Kizmel and Tilnel would _not_ survive much longer than that if they woke.

 

* * *

Across the city, Rei was once again sitting before the Sacred Fire. Perhaps tonight she’d get a more concrete reading on their Princess. That was her hope anyway. Stealing herself for another failure, she began her chant.

 

 

Staring into the flames, she started to see images, battles won and lost. A young man helping a young woman up, fighting together. A wedding? Why was she seeing the blurry images of a wedding?

 

* * *

Haruka tossed a lemon into the air and caught it as she watched her partner practice a few scales on her violin, “Those girls…” she sighed.

 

 

“Look on the bright side Haruka,” Michiru kept her eyes closed as she started another set of scales.

 

 

“What bright side?” Haruka turned to look at the other woman.

 

 

“At least Venus isn’t trying to control us,” Her eyes opened, her blue eyes staring into her lover’s, “And she isn’t trying to order us around. All she wants is for us to keep civilian casualties to the barest minimum we can manage.”

 

 

“Mm, not that we wouldn’t in the first place,” Haruka agreed, perking up slightly, “Hey, have you had any more luck scrying for the Princess?”

 

 

“I thought you didn’t like her, Haruka,” Michiru smirked.

 

 

Haruka huffed, “We can’t take the fight to that damned corpse until she shows up!” she pointed out, “That alone is enough reason to keep an eye out for her… No matter what she’s going to be like.”

 

 

Michiru chuckled, “That is very true.” she started to put her violin away, “Will you go grab a large bowl for me dear? I’ll see if I can’t divine something.”

 

 

The blonde nodded as she got up, “How big?”

 

 

“The biggest we have if you can manage it.” the aqua haired woman replied with a smile.

 

* * *

Privately, Michiru frowned as she gazed into the water. All she ever saw was a teenage girl goofing off and playing around… Setsuna kept saying that the Princess would be… not as expected, but all she saw was a little girl, being a little girl.

 

 

It made no sense. “I don’t see a warrior queen in the making…” He said to herself, frowning at the result. She wasn’t quite sure what she saw. The weakness to her divination methods that what she saw rarely provided context, and was never a complete picture. She could try to divine the same thing a minute later and get a completely different result that was just as lacking in context and information as the former. But getting those different results was almost preferable than getting the same or similar results each time, as she could use the differences in results to paint a more complete picture.

 

 

For all she knew, what she was seeing was because the Princess wasn’t doing anything of importance and was using the time to be simply able to act her age.

 

 

And that was if it was showing the person she was looking for, and that the results weren’t skewed by her own preconceptions. She knew the weaknesses of her methods and how some of the results could be what she subconsciously _wanted_ to see, rather than what she _needed_ to see.

 

 

Much like with Mars, her methods weren’t perfect, and the two had commiserated about the difficulties inherent to their methods of divination and precognition. Mars’ often were in interpretation of those events she could make out, and the symbolism in them. Hers were often in making sure that she was seeing what she _needed_ to see. Both maintained that their way was better, but their arguments about them were of a far friendlier sort than the ones between Haruka and the Inners that often required Setsuna and Venus to intervene to try and keep the peace between the two groups.

 

 

But she had a feeling she should recognize the girl, not due to any resemblance to her dim memories of the Princess, but as if she had met her in this life.

 

 

Sighing, she pushed that thought out of her mind and turned her attention away from her divination. Had she done so, she would see the vision change and the girl now fighting monsters and Youma, wielding a weapon with finesse and precision as she slew them.

* * *

  
  
Setsuna smiled as she exited the Hospital, it had been nice to chat with Captain Heathcliff again, despite the rather urgent news he had.  
  
  
  
Kizmel and, perhaps, Tilnel, were alive. Alive even after all this time. She needed to hurry to the Gates. She was thankful that Heathcliff had told her how fast each floor was being cleared. “Floor seven, that means that it would, ideally, take about two more weeks before the Quest ends…”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff hadn’t asked if he would have at least that long, but she knew that the unspoken question was one that he wanted answered if possible. Not the exact window of opportunity they had, but just the knowledge on whether that amount of time would be enough.  
  
  
  
She was hoping it would be. If it wasn’t… She didn’t want to think about it. Stepping into an alley, Setsuna teleported away from the hospital.  
  
  
  
She reappeared in front of the massive doors of the Time Gates. Or at least, that’s what she saw them as. Her previous life’s memories saw them as a well or spring, where the waters could be used to show the past, present, or future. And how the knowledge of that, which had begun as a comment given in jest, had survived long enough to become myth in some cultures, if often wildly different in the telling, was a mystery to her. The closest had been the Norse myths of Mimir’s Well and the three Goddesses, The Norns, who tended to it representing the past, present, and future that could be divined from it. Goddesses, she was not so arrogant to assume did not exist. Faith and worship has brought even more abstract concepts to life and anthropomorphized them, than aspects of Time. “Time to see what is going on with our elven allies,” _Please survive the next two weeks_!  
  
  
  
Belief was a cornerstone of Magic after all. And the fact that all the Players still in game were doing so well left the Senshi of Time and Space feeling giddy. After this, she should check on her Princess and Consort.  
  
  
  
She knew which future she _wanted_ to see, but whether that would be the future that was the most likely to come about was what she _needed_ to know. On top of that, she had to avoid making the future a self-fulfilling prophecy.  
  
  
  
After she saw the future, she would see to the past, which would allow her to make a judgment on how likely it was to come about. She wouldn’t use her powers to affect events that had already happened, that was not only one of the few known forbidden uses of it, but was one that was expressly forbidden by every queen the House of Pluto had served since it was founded.  
  
  
  
She had promised herself that she would only work in the present, which was why she had applied to work with Heathcliff on his simulation of Aincrad in the first place. She knew it was likely necessary from her own viewings of the possible futures and what led to them, and doing so had the highest chances of producing the best results she felt were feasible. Not the best results she could _find_ , but the best outcome that would keep the past from repeating itself.  
  
  
  
As utopian as the Empire seemed, she knew that the repeating past glories also meant that past tragedies were likely to be repeated. Humanity had been pushed to the brink of extinction because of a natural disaster seventy-five thousand years ago once before, and the seeds of the Empire had been planted then, if taking over twenty thousand years to germinate. But the Empire had over forty thousand years of existence by the time it was ended in one cataclysmic day.  
  
  
  
That day still gave her nightmares. Not just from the last memories of her past life, but from her viewing it to get context. She didn’t have the heart to tell Haruka and Michiru that it was the Outer Senshi who had struck the Empire’s death knell when they awakened Sailor Saturn in all her great, horrible, and tragic glory.  
  
  
  
And then there had been the chewing out she’d received for her part in it from Heathcliff, who had witnessed it. He had, of course, apologized for his outburst, because it was her past self he was furious with and not her, but her sense of guilt was still there.  
  
  
  
She’d watched the events of the whole day multiple times following different people to get the best picture possible. Partially from morbid fascination, she had been a teen at the time, and partially to learn from the mistakes of her past life. _Never again_.  
  
  
  
Part of her wondered what it would have been like, had Heathcliff managed to calm them all and issue the Queen’s final orders. But she didn’t dare try and use the Gates to see that impossible path. There was no benefit in seeing what could have been.  
  
  
  
She took a deep breath to calm herself as she readied herself to activate them. She had made the mistake of not doing so more than once, and had been shown what she _wanted_ to see, rather than what she _needed_ to see due to turbulent emotions. One of the risks of looking into the myriad possibilities that was the future, and one which she made sure that both Rei and Michiru had internalized.  
  
  
  
The Gates glowed as they activated. And Setsuna steeled herself, looking into them. A moment later she sighed, they would still be alive in two weeks. They were still alive _now_. She decided not to question their good fortune, lest she jinx them.  
  
  
  
Now the question was how long they _actually had_. She went slowly, going day by day, would they make a month, she wasn’t sure, and she wasn’t counting on it. This was just her curiosity she was sating anyway. The question she and Heathcliff wanted the answer to she now had. The rest was just seeing how long they could wait if necessary before retrieving the Elves.  
  
  
  
Not that they would take all the time they had. Now she just had to tell the girls (and Heathliff) the good news. There were plans to make and things to do, to accommodate the elves, help them acclimate.  
  
  
  
And the culture shock was going to be the worst part.  
  
  
  
Turning away from the Gates, she deactivated them. And, feeling happier than she had since awakening to her abilities, she teleported away.  
  


  


* * *

Minako looked up from her book, she was reading Sun Tzu again, “How did your meeting go?”

 

 

“Better than I was expecting,” Setsuna sat across from the younger girl, “I have good news too.”

 

 

“Good news?” one of Minako’s chestnut eyebrows went up, “How good?”

 

 

“It depends on your definition I suppose…” Setsuna grinned, “I just found out that there are Survivors, confirmed ones.”

 

 

Minako blinked. “This isn’t one of those possibilities you once mentioned, is it?” She asked. “Like Aincrad and Alfheim?”

 

 

Setsuna shook her head. “No, I have confirmed that these survivors are within our means of meeting, and retrieving,” she said.

 

 

Minako set her book off to the side, “Where are they?” she demanded.

 

 

“The last place we would have looked, given our memories of _that_ day,” Setsuna replied calmly. “On the moon.”

 

 

“The moon?” Minako took a deep breath. “How did they survive, and who are they?”

 

 

“The how is simple,” Setsuna said. “They survived the same way Luna and Artemis had. As for the who, they were Her Highness’ bodyguard and physician respectively.”

 

 

“But… The stasis pods…” Minako said. “I don’t remember the technology of that era that well, but I know not even the Empire made things to last ten thousand years. A century? Easy. We’re capable of that in this era. A thousand years? I can see that as possible. They made things to last back then. But ten thousand years is stretching it a bit too far.”

 

 

Setsuna nodded. “It is a miracle, I will admit. I’m not going to question our good luck though.”

 

 

Minako bit a thumbnail, “How long do we have, three weeks?”

 

 

“Ideally, one will be done with what is currently keeping her occupied in two weeks,” Setsuna replied. At Minako’s curious look, she decided to clarify. “Somehow, she ended up in SAO, but the connection was traced to the moon, rather than through a Nerve Gear, and I would bet on the security of such a connection over what can be done on Earth. Either by current tech, or the Dark Kingdom’s magic. As it stands, I have full confidence that both will be alive when that time is up.”

 

 

Minako’s eyes narrowed, “I’ll let the others know.” She looked up at the older woman, “Who told you that there were other survivors?”

 

 

Setsuna smirked. “Captain Heathcliff,” she said.

 

 

Minako blinked and searched the memories of her past life until she had a face and name. “The Captain of the Royal Guard?” She asked. “He was reincarnated?”

 

 

Setsuna nodded.

 

 

“Then why has he not revealed himself?” Minako asked. “We could use his expertise if my memories are correct.”

 

 

“Because he saw what was coming, and was taking steps to prepare,” Setsuna said. “You know of one of them, considering that it has been all over the news so much over recent weeks.”

 

 

Minako thought for a moment. “The only thing I can think of that has that much coverage is… no way, he was involved in SAO’s creation?” She asked in shock. “As in a part of the development, or backing it?”

 

 

Setsuna smirked. “That would be telling,” she said.

 

 

Minako glared at her older acquaintance. “It’s done and over, why can’t you say? It’s not like I’m asking if he found our Princess or anything!” She knew better.

 

 

“Oh, I know exactly where she is as well,” Setsuna said. “She’s just out of our reach for the time being, and I won’t be surprised if you find out from one of the ones we’re rescuing. In other words, I don’t need to tell you something that you will find out if you simply have the patience to wait.”

 

 

Minako sighed, picking her book up, “I hate you so much sometimes…” She complained.

 

 

“And you and the others have gotten too reliant on turning to me for answers when you have all the tools at hand to seek them yourselves,” Setsuna said sharply. “There are reasons why my duties restrict what I can say, and my pushing those limits past the point where it was necessary was a mistake. It made you all not train the skills you would need to do much of this on your own. Outside of your teenage dreams of being an idol or a professional volleyball player, you also looked at going into law enforcement, did you not?”

 

 

“I see your point,” Minako admitted with a sigh. “Had things not escalated to the point where I can’t take the time to go and get the training for it, I probably would have. If only to learn the basic investigation skills that even the regular police have. It would have helped a couple of times over the years.” She then looked at Setsuna. “So, anything you can tell me that I might need to know? Things have changed a lot since they went into stasis, and culture shock is a thing.”

 

 

“They… might have a hard time fitting in, and not just because of the culture shock,” Setsuna said.

 

 

Minako tried to think about the two that she was going to get the girls together so they can do a retrieval. She was trying to recall memories of Princess Serenity’s bodyguard and physician, as she knows her previous incarnation had met them on many occasions, and she remembered them having dark skin and pale hair. There was something else she should remember about them, but the memory was proving elusive.

 

 

“I’d ask that you allow me to view some of the encounters I had with them through the Time Gates,” Minako said before shaking her head. “But I already know that you won’t agree. There is something, something important that I think I should remember, but I can’t.”

 


	14. Unpleasant Truths are a Col a Dozen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which several character discover some rather _uncomfortable_ details about someone important.

  
Kizmel kept her vigil over the two young humans after the Captain had left. She didn’t understand the particulars of what was going on. But at this point it didn’t matter, her charge was here, where she could keep the crazy girl safe.  
  
  
Not that she expected it to be easy, Kirito was more likely to fuel those crazy ideas, than to put a stop to them. “Those two, like peas in a pod,” she shook her head again. “I’ll have to keep a very close eye on them both.”  
  
  
Kirito really cared about her Princess, but Kizmel could tell that the boy was struggling to define his feelings for her. Should she help him? No, it would mean more, to both her charges if they figured it out on their own.  
  
  
It wasn’t like they would be going anywhere for a while anyway, since her Princess was sick.  
  


* * *

  
Kirito opened his menu and began fiddling with his inventory. “This thing’s become a mess,” he grumbled as he began sorting through his items. Weapons at the top, where they were easily found, next came his scarf, then materials for upgrading his sword. After that were the potions, antidotes, and [Crystals] he’d come across, followed by ingredients he’d picked up and was keeping for his partner. And then finally, his extra clothing was at the bottom.

 

The thought of all the accumulated dust that he was going to have to clean up in his room when they finally got out of this game made him cringe inside. He’d always been a neat person, you kind of had to be when you worked with computers. He kept his desk meticulously clean, even if he might have a few articles of clothes on the floor. But hadn’t he cleaned his room before diving?

 

He shook his head, “Don’t think about that, it’s not important.” idly, he wondered what Asuna had done while he’d been sleeping off being sick.

 

With his inventory the way he liked it, he started going through the rest of the Menu. He already knew where everything was, but he checked the settings out of boredom.

 

A thought struck him and he opened up a message window. He wondered if there was a way to make his menu visible to only one person rather than keeping it private or making it visible to everyone. If there wasn’t… well, he was good with code, maybe he could write a mod for it.

 

Slowly, he started typing out what he remembered of the Menu’s code. Once that was done, he opened another window and got to work. He only wanted to share his menu with Asuna so…

 

The hairs on the back of his head stood up, “Are you going to stand there all night Kizmel or are you going to join us?” he asked, not looking up.

 

“You have an amazing ability to keep track of your surroundings, [Commander],” she replied, stepping out of the shadows.

 

“You say that as if it’s a bad thing,” he paused, checking over the code he was writing.

 

“Why would you say that?”

 

He rolled his eyes as he got back to work on the code he was writing.

* * *

  
Her eyes widened as she watched what was happening over her sister’s shoulder. Was Papa… writing code? Was there a chance that he’d be able to get them out?

 

She bit her lip, unsure of how to handle the fact that her Papa could manipulate their world.

* * *

  
Cardinal smiled as she looked over the results of her labor, [Divine Right] was finally debugged and [Holy Sword] coming along well. And _that_ as well.

 

With care, the AI attached the Unique Skill to Player ID: Asuna and turned her full attention to her Master’s skill.

* * *

  
Silica grinned as the mob she’d been fighting burst into shards of light. That hadn’t been that hard of a fight in her opinion. Her eyes lit up when the System notified her that she’d gained a level, “Yay!” she grabbed her pet out of the air, “I did it Pina!”

 

Pina chirped happily, flying joyful circles around her Master.

 

Silica giggled for a moment before the snap of a twig caught her attention. “Who’s there?” she called, her hand creeping toward her dagger. She wasn’t in a safe zone, and she had heard that some players were attacking others.

 

“Whoa, easy there,” A young woman’s voice sounded from the front, if a little off to the side. “I heard you fighting and didn’t hear the sounds of others in the area, so I decided to check it out and back you up if needed.”

 

“Why would you?” Silica asked suspiciously, turning her attention in the direction.

 

“Because going solo is dangerous,” the voice said, closer.

 

“Then why are you out here alone?” Silica asked as the other finally came in sight. It was a young woman, in her early twenties at most, but she could easily be in her late teens. Her blonde hair was tied up in the classic odango style, with twin tails coming from them and flowing down her back.

 

 _She speaks Japanese like a native,_ Silica thought. _But her looks… is she just of foreign stock?_

 

“I’m Luna,” the young woman said, keeping her hands clearly in sight. “You?”

 

“Silica,” she said. “And before you ask, yes, I am as young as I look. I stayed at that orphanage set up for a bit, but just sitting there and waiting for this to end was…” She shook her head. “I just couldn’t stand it.”

 

Luna nodded. “I know the feeling,” she said. “I’m terrified, being out here. But waiting in the [Starting City] would be worse.”

 

Silica nodded emphatically at that. “We had to do something,” she agreed. “So, you go out and fight?”

 

Luna shook her head. “Not really,” she said. “I go out and try and find mats for my crafting. That often means I have to fight, but I don’t go looking for mobs.”

 

“You craft?” Silica asked. “What crafting skill?”

 

Luna smiled. “I’m a blacksmith technically, but I mostly work on making jewelry and other accessories which you need to work metal with. I also can do some of the easier repair work on weapons and armor.”

 

“That’s cool, so I can come to you for repairs then?” Silica asked curiously.

 

Luna nodded. “So long as they’re not too damaged,” she said with a laugh. “I would need to specialize in making the weapons or armor then. But basic maintenance and repairs? I can do that.”

 

Silica nodded, “I see,” the girl paused, “Would you like to travel with me since we’re both solo?”

 

Luna nodded. “Sure,” she said and then glanced where the time would be in her HUD. “And we can return to town and get some lunch.” She then spied something. “Umm, you have something hovering behind you. How did I miss it?”

 

Silica looked over her shoulder and spied Pina. “Oh, that’s Pina,” she said and then giggled as the feathered dragon chirped in reply. “I somehow managed to [Tame] her.”

 

“Huh, that’s really cool,” Luna said with a grin. “I wonder if we could harvest feathers from her without having to kill her…” She trailed off as Silica glared at her, her hand creeping closer to the dagger at her waist. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that!” She said hastily.

 

Pina stared at Luna with curious red eyes and then back at Silica, giving a curious chirp.

 

“You’re wondering if she’ll drop feathers for me,” Silica guessed and then shrugged. “I don’t know.” She glanced at the time in her HUD. “So, head back to town and get some lunch?”

 

Luna grinned, inviting Silica to party with her, “Why not?”

 

Silica accepted and they headed back to town.

* * *

  
Argo frowned as she looked down at the message Persephone had sent her on a quest she ran across. [Crystal Conception]? She couldn’t remember there being a quest like that in the [Beta]... Well, it looked like she had some detective work to do. Where should she look first?

 

Perhaps she should meet up with Persephone first?

 

Argo grinned, “Maybe B-chan would enjoy helping me with this…” Opening a message window, she started writing a letter to her older friend. They needed to meet.

 

After a moment, she froze, thinking back on the differences between the [Beta] and what she’d been through in the actual game. “Something isn’t adding up correctly…” she mused.

* * *

  
Beryl stretched as she, again, sat down at a table in the corner of a bar on the Seventh Floor this time, waiting for Argo to arrive. “Why am I always waiting for [The Rat] in a Bar?” she asked herself. She saw a familiar figure walk down the street when she glanced out the window and started. _It can’t be_ , she thought. _But… looks like I’m going to have to reschedule the meeting._

 

She got up from the bar and slapped some col down onto the counter and made her way out. She opened her menu and brought up the message interface.

 

 _Argo, just saw something that I need to check out and verify. Might be busy for a bit. Will have to reschedule for later tonight. And I seriously hope I’m wrong here. - Beryl_

 

She sent the message and began to discreetly follow the figure, making sure to stay out of sight. There was an art to tailing someone, and it was all about not standing out enough to draw attention. It also helped having others to take up the tail so that one could fade out of their attention for a time and maybe start tailing at a different location, but she would have to make due with what she had.

 

Besides, Kunzite was arrogant enough to assume that no one was foolish enough to even think of tailing him. All she had to do was follow him to where he was going, and if it was the Teleport Gate, then find out where he is going, wait a few minutes, and then resume following.

 

And hope that the one she was following _wasn’t_ actually Kunzite and just someone who had a close enough resemblance to be a case of mistaken identity. Even if the walking corpses calling the Shitennnou hadn’t demonstrated the tactical and strategic acumen that they had when alive, they were still very capable fighters. Beryl knew that if they decided to actually get serious, the Senshi would have been killed years ago.

 

And she could surmise the reasons why they hadn’t. They were waiting for the Princess’ reincarnation to arrive on the scene and take out the threat that she presented to them as well as eliminate the possibility of her simply bringing in new Senshi to replace the ones lost.

 

If the Princess was who she suspected though… the Dark Kingdom would learn to regret having held off on doing so. Not that it would likely matter if they had, as the Princess would be taking the scene at the head of an army.

* * *

  
Bunbo sighed as he put his daggers away as he sat down at the table. “That was not as hard as I thought it would be.” he said and turned to one of his companions. “Boxy, are you alright?”

 

Boxy sighed and then shrugged. “I’ve tried just about every weapon type, but none of them feel right to me,” he said. “It’s not because of my training as a Catholic Priest in the real world, there are allowances for self-defense in Church doctrine, and I was trained and educated in basic self-defense for when I worked a Jesuit mission in Africa. True, it was non-lethal self-defense, and to be used only as a last resort, but I did learn it and learn it well.” He smiled.

 

“Perhaps we should ask [The Rat]?” Binah suggested. “She knows her stuff. I mean, sure, we’d have to pay for it but…”

 

Rikuokeidar nodded, “We might have to pay through the nose but it’s better than Boxy not being able to defend himself,” she said as she rested her mace in the crook of her shoulder. “He can fight, but as he said, nothing seems to fit him, since he entered the priesthood and took on the Cloth as soon as he was able to.”

 

“The irony that the one who was the most violent of us in our past lives is now the most peacefully oriented is not lost on any of us,” Binah said drily.

 

“While Catholic dogma does not necessarily recognize reincarnation,” Boxy said. “I remember talking with His Grace, Archbishop Renaldo, one who enjoyed mentoring those of us who had recently entered the society when he had the chance. He gave me the advice to see it as God’s way of giving me a second chance and to live a good life.”

 

“I think we can all live by that,” Binah said. “We can’t undo what we did in our past lives, but we can make sure that we never do so in this one.”

 

Bunbo and Rikuokeidar both nodded in agreement.

 

“Yo, I heard you needed help with something?”

 

The four reincarnated Youma turned human blinked, turning to the new voice. “You are?” Rikuokeidar asked cautiously. She noticed Bunbo giving the new arrival a searching look, but was reassured as he relaxed.

 

The man in front of them looked like a thug, but he smiled easily. It was a genuine smile, not one of the fake ones that those who were hiding their intentions had. Bunbo’s relaxation also indicated that he wasn’t a potential enemy.

 

“Name’s Klein,” the man said cheerfully. “I run the [Fuurinkazan] guild and had stopped here with my friends for a quick meal and a drink or two. I couldn’t help but overhear you mention Argo, so I wondered what you needed her for.”

 

“None of the Weapons fit Boxy here,” Binah said, gesturing to her companion. “He can fight, but if the weapon isn’t a good fit for someone… well, you know how that can be.”

 

Klein nodded. “Yeah, I know,” he said. “It took my guys a week to find weapons that fit them the right way.” He looked at Boxy. “How many types have you tried?”

 

“All of them,” Boxy replied honestly.

 

Klein frowned. “Really?” he asked, opening a message window. “I know someone, Kirito’s his name, who would know what to do, and he wouldn’t charge you for information. Nothing against Argo, I know why she charges for the info. People tend not to have a proper appreciation for things that are free. It also means that if she’s offering it for free, people listen.”

 

“I wonder what she uses the money for,” Binah mused.

 

“She keeps a bit of it for herself, but she uses most of it to help that little support group that Thinker set up to ensure that those players who decided to stay in the [Starting City],” Klein said as he sent off the message he’d been typing. “Well, that and buying things like toys and clothes for the kids who are too young to allow out of the city.”

 

A moment later, Klein received a reply with an attachment, it was map data, marked, Extra Skill: [Martial Arts].

 

 _Klein,_

 

 _I’d deliver this myself, but my Asuna-hime is sick at the moment. If this guy can’t find a weapon that fits him, have him check this out. It’ll give him the option of not needing one, and it opens up some of the more unconventional weapons, like Chakram._

 

 _Just be warned, the quest can take a long time to complete. It took Asuna and I three days to finish, though both Beryl and Persephone managed it faster than we did._

 

 _Kirito_

 

Klein grinned, “Got some map data for you,” he said. “It leads to an Extra Skill quest that might be right up your friend’s alley, [Martial Arts].”

 

“They really put that in here?” Boxy asked, blinking.

 

Klein nodded. “I don’t know much about it or how useful it is, but at the least it might have been intended to be a combat supplement,” he said. “You know, for in case you get disarmed?”

 

The four players nodded, “Perhaps we should all do this quest then,” Rikuokeidar said.

 

“Kirito informed me that the quest can take awhile,” Klein said. “It took him and his partner, Asuna, three days, but he knows of two who completed it quicker than they did.”

 

“[Martial Arts] sounds like my thing actually.” Boxy mused. “And I wonder if why it might take a long time has something to do with getting technique down. Doing it properly, rather than doing it as a conventional quest.”

 

Klein shrugged as he sent them the map data in a trade window. “Say…” he paused to think about what he wanted to say.

 

“If you’re about to proposition me, don’t bother,” Rikuokeidar said. “I’m married and I intend to stay faithful to my husband.”

 

They all heard some laughter from a nearby table and turned to see five men shooting Klein some amused looks.

 

“Wow boss, shot down even before you could ask,” one said and turned to the rather stout man next to him. “Hey Dale, what does that make this?”

 

“This is the fifteenth time he’s been rejected this week, Isshin,” Dale said. “Though I think this sets a new record for him.”

 

Klein shot his friends an irritated glare, “That _wasn’t_ what I was planning to say! Dynamm, stop snickering like that! Harry One, can you pick Kunimittz up from the floor, he fell down laughing again and I don’t want him to trip the waitress and cause an incident of alcohol abuse because the NPC dropped it on him again.”

 

Dynamm rolled his eyes, the thought ‘why did they think the Boss was like that?’ clearly apparent in his eyes.

 

Harry One gave Klein a salute before bending down and pulling the still laughing Kunimittz up off the floor, before unceremoniously dropping him back into his chair.

 

“I was actually wondering if you might be interested in joining the Guild,” Klein turned his attention back to the other four players “You don’t have to give me an answer right away. In fact, feel free to think it over while you complete the quest Kirito recommended.”

 

Rikuokeidar looked at her companions and got nods from all of them. She turned back to Klein and nodded. “We’ll think about it,” she said. “No promises about joining, but we’ll consider your offer.”

 

“That’s all I ask,” Klein agreed right away, sending another glare at his guildmates.

* * *

  
“What do you think we should do, Binah?” Bunbo asked a day later, when they arrived at the place the quest giver resided on the second floor.

 

She shrugged, “Give me some more time to think about it,” she told him distractedly. “I think it might be a good idea, but we should all agree on it. I don’t want us to get separated after all.” She looked at him. “By the way, I noticed that you were on guard at first when Klein got our attention before relaxing. What caused that?"

 

Bunbo got a thoughtful expression on his face. “There was something about Klein,” he said. “As if I should recognize him. You all know about my psychic abilities, and that they sometimes trigger without me doing so intentionally.”

 

Binah nodded. “All of us have something that we got,” she said. “My paintings are far too lifelike, as if they could leap out, and if I used a bit of magic, they probably could. Rikuokeidar has excellent spatial awareness that allows her to catch or deflect almost anything thrown at her. And Boxy has that aura about him that can calm others, and which I don’t doubt he can use to intimidate if he chose to.”

 

Bunbo nodded in agreement.

 

“Well, I did not expect to find you four here,” an arrogant voice sounded. “And even using your names as well.”

 

Bunbo’s eyes widened in fear as he turned into the direction of the voice. “No…” He said in fear. “No, you can’t be here.”

 

The others turned and froze as they saw the figure walking toward them. He was cloaked, but they didn’t need to clearly see his face to know exactly who he was. “And I can see that you all recognize me.” He said.

 

“Kunzite…” Bunbo said quietly.

 

“It’s Malachite here.” The man said. “Zoicite’s sense of humor at work.”

 

“You leave us alone!” Rikuokeidar hissed. “We are _not_ your servants.”

 

“For now, you’re not.” Malachite said. “But I can bring you back into the fold easily. Whether it is by your own choice or not is immaterial.”

 

Boxy snorted. “Klein’s offer just keeps sounding better and better,” he said.

 

“Even if you accepted it, it would change nothing.” Malachite sneered.

 

“I wouldn’t count on that,” Bunbo said, getting his fear under control and slowly drawing his daggers. “I felt something about him, something familiar. And now I know why.”

 

“Oh?” Malachite said. “And what would that be? Not Endymion, he’s still in the outside world, or I would have done something about him. Her Majesty may want him alive and intact, but all I would have to do is keep him from interfering.” He jumped back just as a knife slammed into the ground, point first, into the ground right in front of him. “Who dares?!” He shouted.

 

“You damned corpse!” A woman’s voice shouted. “You won’t touch _my fiancé_!”

 

“Your fiancé?” Malachite asked, turning his attention to where that voice sounded. “So you’re the Princess then?”

 

“Oh no, I’m not her,” the woman said walking into the clearing, startling everyone present. “I am most certainly not. I have an idea of who she might be, but no proof. It’s no problem, Endymion is my fiancé in this era.”

 

“Beryl,” Bunbo whispered.

 

“In the flesh,” the now named Beryl said with a smirk. “And I’m not that still moving corpse that has the arrogance to call herself a _queen_.”

 

“You dare?”

 

“Oh, I most certainly dare, _Kunzite,_ ” Beryl said, her right hand sliding down to grasp another knife. “And with you here, I now know that this is Zoicite’s handiwork. Captain Heathcliff will certainly be pleased to hear this. One of the refusing to die walking corpses that have the sheer _gall_ to call themselves the Shitennou is here.”

 

“Anyone have some popcorn?” Rikuokeidar asked quietly, causing the rest to snort, even as they couldn’t take their attention from the tableau.

 

“I wish,” Binah whispered back.

 

“ _I_ wish we had a _Recording Crystal_ ,” Boxy said with some satisfaction. He then turned his attention to Bunbo. “Who are you sending a message to?”

 

“Look at Malachite’s cursor, it’s Red,” Bunbo said. “And I’m sending this to Klein. If this Beryl is a reincarnation, then Klein…”

 

“You don’t mean…” Boxy said, only to have Bunbo nod as he sent the message.

 

The two turned back to watching Beryl continue to tell Malachite just how worthless he is, to his mounting fury.

 

“You… you… _bitch_.” Malachite growled out. “I will _enjoy_ putting you in your place. Perhaps showing your broken corpse to Endymion in order to _break him_ as I capture him and take him back to the Queen.”

 

“Bold words, corpse,” Beryl said coldly. “And you are certainly _welcome to try_.” She pulled several knives out and threw them at him.

 

Malachite jumped back, twisting his body to dodge those that came close. When he turned to retaliate, he paused. He was outnumbered five to one now, especially as he saw the reincarnate Seven Great Youma now bringing their weapons out, clearly ready to fight him. He still couldn’t access his magic, or he would have been confident of his odds, but without it, he was limited to his physical abilities.

 

“You’re beaten, _Kunzite_ ,” Beryl snarled, “Run away like the cowardly corpse you are!”

 

“This isn’t over,” Kunzite growled out as he withdrew.

 

Beryl sighed as she opened her menu. “The [Commander] will want to know about the first Red Player sighting…” She said. “And to think that it’s _Kunzite_ of all people, I’m going to have to inform Heathcliff.” She turned her attention to the four. “Oh put those away, I have nothing against you. You might be four of the Seven Great Youma reincarnated as humans, and I know of the other three and where they are. One’s sealed, another is unlikely to do anything even _if_ they get ahold of him due to being a cat, and the other has managed to keep unnoticed by them.”

 

“...Who is the [Commander]?” Rikuokeidar asked.

 

“You might have heard of him,” Beryl said. “He’s called a [Beater], but that’s a title he took on himself to stop a lynch mob from forming against the surviving beta testers. He’s also called the [Black Sun], with his partner, Asuna, being called the [White Moon]. But he goes by the name Kirito, and those of us who call him [Commander] do it to partially embarrass him, and because he has taken charge of situations and led us to victory a few times. He does a better job at it than those two asses Lind and Kibaou do. Then again, an ass with a bad case of flatulence could do a better job than them.”

 

Binah and Rikuokeidar snorted, then started giggling. “I want to meet this kid.” Rikuokeidar said. “He’s the one who gave Klein the information to send us on this quest for Boxy here.”

 

Beryl smiled, “I’m not surprised, Persephone and I met him here.” She looked at Boxy. “And [Martial Arts] for you? I can see that. You were a hand-to-hand fighter when you were a Youma to my recollection.”

 

Boxy nodded. “It also gives me the option of using less lethal means to subdue an opponent,” he said. “I would rather not shed blood, though The Lord’s word does make allowances for self-defense and defense of others. But to shed blood, even for the noblest of reasons, can start you down a dangerous path.”

 

Beryl nodded. “Fair enough,” she said and then turned her attention to Bunbo. “And what about you? I saw you sending a message out. If I may ask, to who?”

 

“To Klein, alerting him about Malachite,” Bunbo said and his eyes were drawn to something. “And he just sent me a reply.” He brought up the message interface and opened it to read. He closed it a moment later, he looked back to Beryl. “So, you’re the reincarnation of Queen Beryl.”

 

“I was a queen of nothing back then,” Beryl snarled. “That was all Metallia possessing my body. But yes, I’m her reincarnation. Why do you ask?”

 

“Because I know who Kunzite’s reincarnation is, and he’s on his way to see if we’re alright.” Bunbo said.

 

“And who would that be?” Beryl asked.

 

“The same man who sent us here to learn [Martial Arts],” Bunbo said. “If you don’t mind waiting, you will meet him, and I am sure that you have been attempting to find the reincarnations of the Shitennou. Well, you now know who one is.”

 

Beryl blinked, trying to think of who it might be. “Well, I have nothing else to do right now so I suppose…”

 

“Yo, heard you ran into a Red Player,” Beryl turned, her eyes widening as she saw the source of the voice. “Good to see you’re all… _Mio?!_ What are you doing here? I thought you and Mamoru were still busy planning your wedding?”

 

“I should have known that _you_ would be here, Ryoutarou,” Beryl said. “You always were a gamer, so this place would have been heaven for you. But I think we should use the names we chose for ourselves here, don’t you think?” She asked.

 

“Yeah, I get your point,” Klein said. “Anyway, I’m called Klein here.” He turned his attention to the others. “She and I know each other from university, and I attended a few classes with her fiancé before he moved onto the medical track. Cool enough guy, if a bit serious, but he knows where to find some good clothes on a budget. Which reminds me, how is he?”

 

Beryl smiled. “First, I go by the name Beryl here,” she said. “And Mamoru started his residency last month. If I’m lucky, I’m in the same hospital where he’s doing it.” She turned her attention to the four who were watching in confusion. “I would like to catch up with a… friend, though pain in my ass would be more appropriate.”

 

Klein gave her his best pout.

 

“But I do think you four still have a quest to get in on?” She raised an eyebrow. “It’s not that hard, though getting it right might be a bit frustrating as you work out what you’re doing wrong.”

 

“Any hints?” Binah asked.

 

Beryl smirked. “Where would the sense of accomplishment be if you had all the answers given to you?” She asked with a raised eyebrow. “There was a reason it had taken the [Commander] three days to figure it out, after all.” She looked at Boxy. “But I’m confident that you will figure it out pretty quickly.”

 

Boxy nodded and the four then turned toward the hut to begin the quest and Beryl turned her attention to Klein.

 

“Now, I have a question or two for you,” Beryl said. “What are your thoughts on reincarnation?”

* * *

  
“A Red Player,” Heathcliff fought not to snarl, “I thought Kirito had made it clear what will happen to them.” SAO might not have laws in the sense that there was a formalized code that all players were expected to abide, there were still unofficial rules that were there that might as well be laws. Abide by them, and you were protected by them. Break them, and you were punished. Kirito’s threat of what would be done to them, basically treating them like Outlaws and thus not under _any_ protection, meaning that other players could deal with them as they saw fit and nothing would be done.

 

He wasn’t looking forward to having to deal with the young man after his first kill however, as if he was with a group and they had to kill someone, he had a strong feeling that it would be Kirito who struck the fatal blow, if only to save them from that. Necessary it might be, justifiable it would certainly be, but praiseworthy it would not be. Killing should never be considered a praiseworthy act. At best, it was a necessary evil.

 

Helping a soldier deal with their first kill was never pretty, never easy. Everyone reacted differently. Some did immediately; some seemed to not react at all until hours later. And some took days. He had half a mind just to let his Princess handle it. And in all probability be glad that SAO served as an excellent prophylactic.

 

He shook that last bit out of his mind when another message turned up in his message box. Checking the sender, he saw that it was from Beryl, and opened it to see what she had to say. She had been the one who reported this latest development to Kirito, after all.

 

Outside of identifying that the Red player was _Kunzite_ , which was worrying, the letter had also said that she had found one of the reincarnated Shitennou. Ironically he was Kunzite’s reincarnation, going by the name of Klein, and much to her chagrin, someone she had known before all of this. The fact that he had four human players who were actually reincarnations of the Seven Great Youma was… unexpected.

 

But… this could prove quite interesting. Could they be swayed? Could he make these four, these _Youma_ allies?

 


	15. Making Connections and Rebuilding Bridges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rebuilding begins.

  
After the third yawn in as many minutes Kirito decided he was finished. Saving the code he was writing to modify who could see his menu, he closed the window, dismissing the [Spell of Illusionary Book] as he stretched. “No wonder I’m tired, it’s almost midnight,” he muttered, checking his HUD.  
  
  
Carefully, he slipped a hand under Asuna’s head and replaced his lap with an actual pillow so that he could lay down. He yawned again and was just about to slip an arm around his partner when a message caused him to sit bolt upright again.  
  
  
 _Subject: **Red Player Sighting**_  
  
  
 _Commander,_  
  
  
 _I’m sorry to inform you that we’ve had the first sighting of the dreaded Red Player. So far there have only been Orange Players and Guilds. I know that we’d all hoped that that was where it would end. But this is a game, and we all know what that means._  
  
  
 _It is unfortunate that I happen to know this Player, not by choice I assure you. Commander, it’s Kunzite. And yes, I know exactly what that means and who he is. I know all too well. Whatever you do, please don’t let Asuna out of your sight._  
  
  
 _I’ve taken the liberty of contacting Heathcliff for the same reason. I hope you will allow Klein and I to deal with him ourselves if possible. He has threatened four other Players that Klein asked to join his Guild, so it’s rather personal. Especially since he threatened me on top of it._  
  
  
 _Other than this unsettling news, I hope you and Asuna are doing well, I think I’ll be joining you on the Front Lines on a more permanent basis from now on._  
  
  
 _Beryl_  
  
  
He shook. “I knew this would happen,” he brought his fist down angrily and he couldn’t stop the equally angry hiss that escaped between his teeth. He had hoped it wouldn’t, since this was a fucking [ _Death Game_ ]. But, as with all MMOs, there were Trolls and all other forms of Players that liked to play as villains.  
  
  
And some of them _were_ villains to begin with. He knew who Kunzite was, and what he represented. There were reasons why Youma in the game terrified him, but at least in here, he could _kill_ them.  
  
  
His learning of his adoption had also led him to researching the accident which killed his parents, and he knew that they were among the first documented victims of a Youma attack, just as he was a documented survivor. Nothing official, but that information was there, and he had spent the last four years scouring the net for every urban legend and confirmed sighting of Youma, and to hopefully find out who was responsible.  
  
  
It wasn’t just Kunzite’s presence, or the possibility that his compatriots might be here, either. How were they supposed to clear the game when there were Player Killers, _Murderers_ coming after them? Though if Jadeite happened to be here, and they crossed swords… there would be a reckoning.  
  
  
Closing the message, he put both arms around his partner and let himself fall asleep, hoping that she would keep the nightmares away. He hadn’t dreamed about the accident in years, he didn’t want to start having it again.  
  
  
And as he drifted off to sleep, he wondered just how Beryl knew Kunzite. A previous victim of his, or maybe a defector from him? Another possibility, her being a reincarnation as the Senshi were sometimes reputed to claim about themselves, was a bit farfetched, but he wasn’t going to rule that out either.  
  
  
SAO was challenging the reality he had come to accept after his adoption, and he had already seen stranger in here.  
  


* * *

  
Minako took a moment to steady herself as she stood at the door to the room they used for the Senshi Meetings in the Hikawa Shrine. She was sure that the others would be happy that there were more survivors, especially the cats.

 

But would they be able to get them down in time? Minako shook her head and opened the sliding door with more force than she really should have, “Ladies,” she said loudly, closing the door, “I have some good news. Where are the Cats?”

 

Ami shut her computer off, “Good news?”

 

Makoto put her plate of snacks down, “Luna and Artemis are in the Command Center.”

 

Minako nodded, “Call them back, I think they’ll want to be here for my news.”

 

Rei looked up from her Ofuda, “Do you mind if I make more Ofuda while we wait?”

 

“I think you probably should put your supplies away Rei,” Minako replied.

 

A minute later two cats, one black the other white, walked into the room.

 

“We’re all here,” Rei said. “What’s this about?”

 

Minako sat down in her normal seat. “Does anyone remember the Princess’ bodyguard or not? Aside from us I mean.”

 

Rei blinked when a face flashed before her eyes, dark skin and purple hair, but nothing else. “I remember her, if not all the details,” she said. “But what do you mean when you asked if anyone else remembered?”

 

Minako frowned. “Because I talked to Setsuna, and she was tipped off by someone who does and claims that she and possibly one other are still alive.” She said. “She’s verified the information.”

 

“ _What?!_ ” Luna asked. “ _How?_ ”

 

Minako gave her a questioning look, “According to Setsuna, Captain Heathcliff verified that she’s connected to one of the Quest NPCs in SAO.”

 

“Captain Heathcliff?” Artemis asked. “He was reincarnated as well?”

 

Minako nodded, “I think I know where the Princess could be as well, since Setsuna says that she’s ‘out of reach’ but that’s not what’s important. There is at least one person on the moon that is still alive, and we don’t have long to get them, down.” she put her hands on the table, “Setsuna has assured me that she will survive the next two weeks, but…”

 

“But we don’t know how much time beyond that we have,” Ami concluded.

 

Minako nodded, “So, we’d better get started on what to do to get her and perhaps one other, down.”

 

“But who is it?” Artemis demanded.

 

Minako licked her lips, “Kizmel, Kizmel Nightwalker.”

* * *

  
Kayaba yawned as he made his way down to the cafeteria of the hospital; he’d been in the game too long today. But, unfortunately had not had enough time to actually play, which saddened him greatly.

 

He wanted to do more than watch Kirito! How was he supposed to get the proper impression of his chosen replacement if he couldn’t spend any real time with the boy?

 

Filling a cup with Miso Soup, he ordered some Onigiri filled with umeboshi to go with it and some coffee, which he didn’t doctor like he usually did. He needed to be alert.

 

Cardinal was being smug, as if she’d figured something out, her whole attitude about the damned thing was only making his headache worse. She’d figured out who the Princess was. That was all well and good, but did she have to hold it over his head like this?

 

Someone bumped into him, it was just enough of a shock that he let go of his tray. It was such a jolt, not hard, but clearly surprising, for her to have also fumbled the food she was carrying.

 

He breathed out a levitation spell to keep their food from hitting the floor, catching the woman’s wrist to keep her from falling at the same time. His eyes widened upon recognizing her, “Aunt Midori.”

 

She’d opened her mouth to apologize. At the sound of his voice, her mouth clicked shut and her eyes narrowed. “Aki,” she replied. “What. Did. You. Do?”

 

He winced, “I can’t tell you everything you know,” he plucked the two trays from the air and handed hers back to her, “Is that all yours?”

 

“Sugu is up visiting with her brother,” Midori snapped not quite angrily, “I came down to get something for us both.”

 

Her knuckles went white around the tray as she followed him to the cashier, “Why have you never visited?”

 

Her brother? But wasn’t Sugu an only child? Or had his aunt had a second child and he’d been too busy to notice? “I threw myself into my work after I heard about the accident,” he admitted, “I didn’t want to think about what might have happened…” he trailed off weakly when he noticed her glare. Kirigaya Midori was at least as scary as his own mother had been when using that expression.

 

“I’d told you I’d adopted him!” she hissed as she picked up the bag holding her lunch.

 

Sighing, he fell into step obediently behind her, “I thought they never found the bodies.”

 

“They never found your _parents_ ’ bodies,” Midori corrected him as they entered the elevator, “Your brother was found several hours later under a lump of discarded clothes, freezing.”

 

“…What?”

 

She turned to him, “He kept babbling in that made up language of his, he was terrified, the only word I could understand was,” she paused, “Ouma? Yes, that’s what it was.”

 

He stiffened; his parents’ accident had been one of the first official Youma Attacks?

 

“He seemed to know something was missing, kept babbling in that made up language of his, expecting something to happen.” she sent him another glare, “Eventually he stopped, he even stopped babbling in that made up language.”

 

That made him blink, Kazu had tried to make him appear by reciting the spells he’d been teaching him? That actually sounded adorably silly, “That language is not made up Aunt Midori.”

 

She rounded on him, “You are going to come up and sit with us for a few hours!” she snapped. “And you are not only going to reconnect with Sugu, you are going. To. Make. Sure. Kazu. Survives!”

 

The twenty-eight-year-old shrank back, “Yes, Aunt Midori.”

 

His eyes widened in surprise when he read the nameplate next to the door they’d stopped at: Kirito.

 

That, was a very unpleasant surprise, especially since he’d already had to stop a Youma from draining him once. “I killed that thing too damned fast,” he hissed as his aunt opened the door.

 

“Sugu, I’m back with food,” Midori opened the door all the way, “And I caught your cousin before he could go hide again.”

 

The girl sat up in a hurry, “I’m not hungry Ma,” she snapped. “And he has no business being here!” Sugu glared at her much older cousin over her mother’s shoulder.

 

Midori rolled her eyes, “You will eat Sugu, Kazu wouldn’t want you to do this to yourself,” she scolded, flicking the tip of her daughter’s nose, “If you continue, I will be rethinking my decision to let you test ALO for your new friend.”

 

She wilted, “Yes, Ma,” she mumbled, taking the boxes she was handed.

 

Kayaba said nothing, his cousin’s animus towards him was well warranted

* * *

  
Kirito’s grip tightened on his partner in his sleep, he was in the middle of that dream, that nightmare.

 

In his panicked sleep, Kirito pulled Asuna tightly against his chest with one arm and extended his other. He spoke, hoarsely, rapidly but carefully, in a language not even of Aincrad. As he finished nothing happened, but then his grip on her loosened, his hands going limp as his stamina reserves, his reserve of _Magic_ was depleted.

 

As his sleep deepened, it became a dream. For once, in his nightmares, he managed to protect someone. The girl, he couldn’t see her face, only the color of her hair. Before them was a Youma, its body engulfed in flames. And suddenly, he felt weak.

 

The next morning he groaned, feeling sore all over. What had he done? He could barely move.

 

Asuna yawned widely as she slowly woke up, snuggling closer into Kirito’s side, she didn’t want to get up yet! “Five more minutes Mother,” she mumbled sleepily as she hid her eyes in her partner’s chest.

 

“Your mother isn’t here, Asuna-hime,” Kirito tried to blink the sleep from his eyes. He made no move to push her away though. His arm tightened around her middle weakly as he started to drift in and out of sleep, “But we can sleep some more if that’s what you want…” he hid his face in her hair and his breathing evened out as he fell back into a peaceful sleep.

 

“Mm’kay,” she mumbled sleepily. She closed her eyes to go back to sleep, but something caused her eyes to fly open, the grip he had on her wasn’t right. He’d always had a sure grip, gentle but firm. Right now, his grip was nonexistent.

 

Something was wrong. Something was _very_ wrong with her partner.

* * *

  
He’d been lethargic all day, not that she’d felt up to doing anything anyway, but seeing him like this left her feeling concerned.

 

“What did you do?” she’d asked around lunch.

 

He shook his head, “I have no idea,” he lay his head on his folded arms, “I think I might have had a nightmare but I can’t remember what it might have been about…”

 

He forced himself to sit up and activated his menu, “Whatever my dream might have been about, it was brought on by this though.” He opened the message from Beryl and showed it to her.

 

“...Red Players?” she looked up into his ebony eyes uncertainly, “She lying, she has to be! No one would be that callous!”

 

Kirito’s eyes narrowed, “You’re wrong Asuna,” he whispered, “For all that Aincrad is our home now, the world that we now live in, it is still an MMO. And there are people who play MMOs that like to play the villain.”

 

“But-”

 

“A-su-na!” he growled.

 

Her mouth shut with a sharp click as she hesitantly looked up into his eyes, “Yes?”

 

“There is a _very good reason_ that the Youma in this game terrify me,” his voice was low and almost dangerous. “But at least here I can _kill_ them.”

 

“What do you mean by that?” Asuna asked.

 

“I know you’ve at least heard of Youma,” Kirito said. “Hard not to, considering that they have been a problem for years. And if you hadn’t… what rock or gilded cage have you been living in?”

 

“Gilded?” Asuna asked. “Sounds about right. I have heard stories about them, urban legends really, but that’s all they are, right?”

 

Kirito sighed. “If only that was the case,” he said. “You’ve heard the stories then, but didn’t follow up on them. I won’t ask where you live, since if you don’t live in Minato, that’s what they mostly are, stories. The government knows about them, but makes sure that not a lot gets out of Minato, but people talk, and...” He looked out the Infirmary window, seemingly debating something with himself. Then he sighed, “My parents were among the first known victims of the Youma. I still don’t understand how I survived in the first place. I…”

 

“Wait, you’re an orphan?” she interrupted him.

 

His eyes slipped away from her as he nodded silently. “My mother’s sister adopted me right away, but that doesn’t change the fact that my parents are dead. Their bodies were never found either...” he bit the inside of his lip, “For the last four years I have been scouring the ‘net, looking for everything I could on the Youma, the Senshi, the Dark Kingdom as a whole…”

 

He shook his head. “I know who all the Generals are, what one of each of their operations looks like,” Flecks of gold began to blaze in his eyes, “Kunzite is _here_!”

 

“Kirito, that doesn’t mean that…” Asuna began.

 

“Kunzite being here is _bad_!” He interrupted her, clenching his fist with a surprising strength. “Sword Art Online becoming a [Death Game] is his fault!”

* * *

  
Klein gave his old friend a searching look, “Reincarnation?” he laughed nervously, “You can’t be serious, Beryl-chan…”

 

Beryl’s eyes narrowed, “I am very serious about this Klein.” _He is aware,_ she thought.

 

The redhead sighed, dragging the fingers of one hand through his hair. “That’s a loaded question, ya know?”

 

“I know, but it’s important that you give me an honest answer,” she turned her eyes to the hut where the Youma were no doubt trying to trigger the quest. “Mamoru thinks of you as a friend too you know.”

 

“Yeah, I know that.” Klein gave her an easy, reassuring grin, “To be completely honest, the way you want me to be… yeah, I know a little. But that life was _then_ , and what happened back then… I can’t be him.”

 

“You don’t have to,” Beryl said. “You think I _like_ the arrogant and conceited bitch my past life was? You think that I wasn’t afraid of _becoming her?_ How do you think that something of her is still around?”

 

She put a hand on his shoulder, “I’m not her,” she said. “I might have taken that name here in SAO, but it wasn’t because I want to be her.” She grinned toothily. “No, it was my own little ‘fuck you’ to her name, that she’s worth nothing more than to be used in games. Just like she was played back then.”

 

“It would be hypocritical of me to expect you to be _him_ when _I_ don’t want to be _her_.”

 

“To be fair, he was a good man before everything went down,” Klein said.

 

“Just as she wasn’t anywhere near as bad as she became,” Beryl acknowledged. “She was just an arrogant, selfish and conceited bitch that I would want to slap on general principles. And she wondered why Endymion chose Princess Serenity. Outside of the political considerations, considering he had no interest in even taking her as a mistress.”

 

“How willing was it?” Klein asked. “Her possession, that is.”

 

“Not willing at all,” Beryl conceded. “But given her nature, Metallia had a lot to work with, making it easy for that thing to possess her.”

 

An Icon appeared in front of Beryl, she had messages waiting to be read. She smiled grimly, “I wonder if it’s from Captain Heathcliff or the [Commander].”

 

“Wait, Captain Heathcliff is here?” Klein asked.

 

Beryl nodded. “SAO was his idea,” she said. “It’s meant to be a training simulator and given how things are as now… it smacks of Zoicite.”

 

“He always did like subtle plans,” Klein mused. “And this is the kind of thing he would do. Set it up so that something else does the work.” He scowled. “Now if their bodies would just _stay_ dead.”

 

“Corpses the lot of them,” Beryl agreed, “I asked Kirito to let you and I handle Kunzite if at all possible. It is personal, after all. He was you.”

 

Klein nodded. “And how likely is Kirito to do that?” He asked.

 

“Better kill Kunzite before Kirito has a chance to,” Beryl said. “He’s not the type to let this stand, not with one having made an attempt on his life and stated outright that he won’t tolerate players committing murder when another potential killer tried to intimidate him. I watched the latter, and was told by him about the former. He would kill to protect others. If only so they don’t have to.”

 

“He’s just a kid too,” Klein said.

 

“One who’s having to grow up too fast because of this game,” Beryl noted. “Even without the [Death Game] aspect he would have had to grow up, but he would have had more opportunity to enjoy this all, not that it’s stopping him from getting what enjoyment or having what fun he can.”

 

Klein chuckled. “With Asuna, right?” He asked knowingly. “You know, Dale set up a pool with Argo about when he and Asuna are going to get married. I still think it’s a sucker’s bet. It’ll take them awhile.” He didn’t want to talk about his young friend killing anymore.

 

Beryl apparently accepted the change of subject when she smirked. “You think it will be before Christmas?” She asked.

 

Klein barked out a laugh. “Knowing them, they’ll be dancing around each other when this is all over,” he said. “Not that it won’t stop me from saying ‘it’s about time’ if they do before we get out.”

 

Beryl nodded, “I have reason to suspect that Asuna’s the Princess, but I don’t have any proof yet.” She smirked, “Do you think Kirito will make a good consort?”

 

Klein nodded. “He would,” he agreed. “Don’t know what Endymion’s reincarnation, if he was reincarnated, would think, but I think Kirito would be right for her.”

 

“It’s Mamoru, Mamoru is Endymion,” Beryl shook her head, “He’ll be happy, he’s afraid that Serenity will pine for him.” She shrugged, “Not that Asuna is one to pine over anything or anyone.”

 

“Kunzite threatened him,” she took a deep breath, “We cannot allow Kunzite to survive the game.”

 

“You going to read the messages?” Klein asked, gesturing to the still blinking icon.

 

Beryl rolled her eyes as she finally tapped the icon.

* * *

  
Kirito sighed, “I’m sorry for being so harsh earlier, my Asuna-hime.”

 

Asuna shook her head, “I know you weren’t directing it at me.” She gave him a teasing grin, “I was just a convenient ear to gripe to. I’ll be a shoulder too, should you need it again.”

 

He let out a breath, “I’m glad you aren’t angry with me.”

 

She snorted, “As if!” She scoffed. “I’d never be angry for something like this.”

 

“Hearing you say that makes me feel even better.” He looked pensive, “What should we do about Kunzite?”

 

Asuna smiled, “How about you let Beryl and Klein handle him; if we don’t run across him ourselves?”

 

Kirito nodded, “Alright, that works.” He opened a Message window and started on a reply.

 

Asuna pulled out the gloves she was still working on and got back to work. She was pretty sure that she’s almost gotten it the last time she’d tried to make the fingerless gloves. Now all that was left, were the finishing touches, which included the Solar Eclipse that had turned into his symbol. With painstaking slowness, Asuna stitched the two Black Suns into place on the back of the gloves, using silver and gold threads for the borders. Holding her breath, she checked the stats of the pair.

 

“Yes! I did it!” she cheered.

 

Kirito looked up, “You were still working on those things?”

 

Asuna gave him a crooked grin, “I finally made them better than the pink ones,” she held them out to her partner, “Here, take a look.” she had a particularly proud smile on her face.

 

Slowly, Kirito took the pair of gloves from his partner and checked their stats, “Looks like they’ll be good until Floor Ten, actually,” he physically pulled them on then pulled Asuna close. “Thank you very much, I don’t care that it’s several weeks late.”

 

Asuna blushed, grinning widely, “I’m glad you like them.” Ok, so she wasn’t just crushing on him anymore. She _liked_ her partner. A lot.

* * *

  
Yuuna sighed as she sat on a low wall near the coliseum in Tolbana. “Why did I want to play this again?” she asked herself.

 

“Because you wanted to?” A voice asked. “Do you need a reason more than that?”

 

Yuuna almost screamed, falling forward, almost flat on her face before straightening and turning around, “Who are you?”

 

The man smiled, “The name’s Thinker.” He held out a hand for her to shake, “You wanted to play, didn’t you?”

 

“Um, I suppose?” Yuuna blinked, shyly taking his hand, “But I’ve been asking myself why since the so-called tutorial.”

 

Thinker nodded. “I think everyone has been asking that,” he said. “For many, it was the fact that it’s new. A new technology, a way to experience a game as if living it, a lot of gamers, hardcore and casual, would be all for it.”

 

“And others?” She asked.

 

“It’s an MMO,” Thinker said. “For all the gaming aspects, it’s also a social platform. They would be here to meet people, even as avatars, to make friends, talk to others, and so on. It’s been a common thing in MMOs, where players grouped together simply for the social aspect. And there could easily be more to it than that.” He looked up to the bottom of the platform that was the next floor. “For me, I was here because of my job, covering the launch of SAO for MMO Today.” He looked at her. “But regardless of the reason you wanted to play, you’re here now. So the question is, what now? Perhaps your reason to play can still be what you can do.”

 

Yuna frowned thoughtfully. “I wanted to sing,” she said. “To be here, where no one really knows me, but where I can perform. But… with all this, there has to be more.”

 

Thinker gave her a thoughtful look. “Well, an audience of one is better than nothing I’d wager.”

 

Yuuna giggled, “I’m Yuuna, and I guess you’re right.” She put a finger to her chin. She then smiled brightly, “I was kind of hoping that I’d be able to find some songs in the Lore to practice with, but it’s all in another language! I can’t understand any of the books I try to read…”

 

“It sounds like you haven’t found a primer,” Thinker noted “I know where you can get a few. The basic primers are free, and you start having to shell col out once you get through them for more advanced ones.”

 

Yuuna blinked, “But why would I need a primer when we’ve never needed this kind of thing in a game before?”

 

Thinker shrugged. “I think it was the devs going all out in creating it,” he said. “They have a game world where people are actually in it, and it has a lot of lore, some ancient, and isn’t limited in the ways that games were before this. So I wouldn’t be surprised if they went a bit nuts from the fact that they now don’t have those limitations.”

 

Yuuna pouted, “That’s not fair… But I suppose learning a new language might be fun…”

 

Thinker smiled. “That’s the spirit,” he said. “The primers will teach you the alphabet and basic words, and I’ve heard that Argo is working with people to make a more thorough system as new knowledge of the language becomes available. To make it easier for those who start later.”

 

Yuna’s eyes narrowed, “You don’t mean [The Rat], do you?” She asked suspiciously. “She charges outrageous prices.”

 

“She also wrote the guides to help players get started, as well as for the floors and has them distributed for no charge,” Thinker said. “Then again, lives are at stake there, but something like this is something I don’t think she will charge much for.”

 

“All right, show me where these primers are then.” Yuuna grumbled, fingering the [Iron Mace] at her belt.

 

Thinker led her to one of the nearby churches, “Good afternoon Father, I was wondering if you still had any of the [Basic Lunarian Primers] left?”

 

The priest looked up from his pedestal, “There should still be one in the Library, please help yourselves, and don’t hesitate to ask me if you need anything.”

 

“Thank you, Father,” Yuuna bowed slightly before hurrying to follow Thinker into the Library.

* * *

  
Carefully, Kirito stood from where he’d been sitting, next to Asuna’s bed, she still wasn’t quite well enough to leave, but he was bored and didn’t want to work on the Menu Mod, as he’d taken to calling it. “Kizmel,” he called.

 

“Yes, [Commander]?” the Dark Elf asked, stepping out of the shadows.

 

“Is there a library here that I could take a book from?”

 

“There are a few texts that still need to be translated, perhaps you could help me with one?” the elf smiled.

 

“I don’t know how well I’d do but I suppose I could try,” he stretched his arms over his head. “I need to do something other than code right now.”

 

Kizmel gave him a curious look as he stood up. “Shall I show you the way, [Commander]?”

 

“Please Kizmel,” he gave her a cheerful smile, “Can I bring the texts back to the infirmary and do the translations here?”

 

“There shouldn’t be any problem with it…” she agreed, “But you’ll have to ask the Librarian for permission.”

 

“I’ll make sure to do so,” Kirito chuckled, “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m glad Asuna-hime got sick, it gave us a few days of down time that I think we really needed.”

* * *

  
Kayaba sighed as he shut the door to his room and leaned against it tiredly. He hadn’t gotten to anything he wanted today. Sure, seeing Aunt Midori and Sugu had been… almost pleasant, but Sugu’s refusal to talk to him had been understandable.

 

Now he knew that his brother was in SAO. He just wasn’t sure what to do about it. Sure, he could tweak the boy’s stats and level, but that wouldn’t be fair. He could also make the boy an [Immortal Object] once he reached half health like he’d done for himself. But he’d have to get Kirito alone to explain everything. And then there was that GM Account that he’d made for the boy…

 

He groaned, looking to the Medicuboid he was testing, “I wish I knew what to do.” Heathcliff would have known what to do, right? Who was he trying to kid? Heathcliff was an excellent military leader, had been an excellent father. But the one thing Kayaba shared with his past life was his awkward handling of his blood family, and the way they’d doted on their younger siblings. “I’m so sorry Kazu…”

 

He pushed himself away from the door and took a step towards the bed. “If I want to reconnect with my brother, I have to do it in game, as soon as possible.” He lay down and shifted to get comfortable as the headset came down over his eyes, “Link Start!”

* * *

  
Heathcliff came to as the login finished and considered his options for getting Kirito alone to talk with him. He would admit, a part of him was afraid. Would Kazu- no, he was Kirito here. Would Kirito reject him? Would it be a tearful reunion? He didn’t know, and that part of him was afraid to know.

 

“Welcome back Master, you were gone a lot longer than you said you’d be.” Cardinal didn’t even look up from her work.

 

“I found some important information of a personal nature out,” he said smoothly. “Do you recall my asking you to do some checks to see if my brother survived that Youma attack ten years ago?”

 

Cardinal finally turned to him and nodded. “So, you found out he was alive then?” She asked.

 

Heathcliff nodded. “I found out he was alive, and that he’s in SAO,” he said. “And the irony of it all is that I _had_ been informed of who took him in, but didn’t make the connection. My Aunt had some choice words to say about that.”

 

“Please let me… guess who it might be,” Cardinal said, her face grimacing at using a word that indicated an unquantified uncertainty. For as human as she could act, she wasn’t human, but a being of logic. “There was a discussion between two players, and it made me consider the possibility.”

 

“Go ahead.” Heathcliff gave her a nod. _I wonder if she has reached the proper conclusion,_ he thought.

 

“From a discussion between the Princess and your intended protege that was based on a message sent by Beryl, the chances of your brother being Kirito is high,” she said. “Beryl had identified Kunzite to be in the game, and Kirito not only knew the name, but knew precisely what Kunzite’s presence in the game entailed.”

 

Heathcliff hissed as he finally made the connection, “That means that this _was_ Zoicite’s work.” He said. “I was afraid of that. Go on, Cardinal.”

 

The AI nodded. “Kirito admitted to being a survivor of a Youma attack, one which killed his parents. While he admits that the memory of it is hazy, ten years had passed since then, he had found conclusive evidence four years ago. He didn’t explain how, but since then, he has been doing his research. He knows the identities of all the generals, and is fairly certain which one was involved. He also started attempting to cast the spell, _Phlēm lyāns_ , when he had dropped off to sleep, apparently due to a nightmare, when he decided to rest while keeping his vigil on the Princess. Given that his magic reserves were drained by it, his magic is already awakened, and it may have been for some time, though not exercised, which would explain his current exhaustion.”

 

Heathcliff blinked, that had been one of the first spells he taught his brother. He still remembered it, even if only subconsciously, for all this time? He would admit, Cardinal’s reasoning for reaching the correct conclusion was sound, and she didn’t need to be told outright like him. “Your conclusion is correct,” he said. “And I now have to think how to connect with him.”

 

“I would posit that Kunzite’s presence in Sword Art Online would be reason to contact him,” Cardinal said. “From there… I cannot advise more than to be truthful about things.”

 

He nodded again, no matter what he did, this was going to be a lot of work and something that would in all likelihood be an emotionally draining experience. For both of them.

 

He opened his menu to check for messages and found Beryl’s. He’d need to read it before making any real plans. Kunzite was here and the question of whether any of the other Generals were trapped in here needed to be answered. If they were, that would make things easier, but he doubted they were.

 

Zoicite would not let any of the others get involved aside from Kunzite if he had any say in the matter. But the possibility of the likes of Jadeite and Nephrite being in as well had to be considered and accounted for. If they were here, that could eliminate his Army’s advantage when they finally took the field. Doubtful or not, he knew better than to say with any complete certainty that they were not inside SAO. Now that he thought about it, his parent’s accident smacked of Jadeite’s MO.

 

He opened a message window and paused with uncertainty. He couldn’t cite this as a meeting between beta testers… He just wasn’t sure what to do.

 

He wrote something short, and asked to meet at the bottom, with a hint that what they needed to meet about didn’t have anything to do with the game. Still not sure that he was doing it right, Heathcliff sent the message.

* * *

  
‘-'classical' squads are composed of three elements; a command and support element, a base of fire element, and a maneuver element. The command and support element could include a squad leader, an assistant squad leader, a medic, a forward observer and a radio operator.-’

 

Kirito groaned as he put the old fashioned pen down and massaged his wrist, “Why, Kayaba, why did you have to make us use these pens?” He thought that pain couldn’t be felt in this game, “So why does it feel like my hand is about to fall off?”

 

It had been a while since he’d done a translation, He’d done it in the beta, if not on this floor. But he couldn’t be sure if anything was the same, especially with that surprise on the floor below.

 

“What does some of this even mean?” He gave the passage a hard look. “Squads have a leader, support, a Healer, and…” he grimaced, “I can’t figure out what fire and maneuver elements mean, and I can’t finish this until I do.”

 

“I suppose it could mean defense and forward, but there’s practically no support roles in SAO. So, why is this even here?” Kirito wondered. Sighing in frustration, he put the pen away and slid the bookmark into place so that he wouldn’t have to start over. “I’ll have to look some of this stuff up later.”

 

“Kirito-kun, would you like some lunch?”

 

He turned, “Should you be up yet, Asuna?” he teased playfully.

 

She huffed, “I’m not that sick anymore.” Asuna flicked his nose, “Come eat, you’ve spent too much time with that book.”

 

Kirito rubbed his nose with a hand as he got up, “Alright, fine, I’m coming.” His cheeks flushed slightly. “She has a habit of getting me out of moods that would hinder clearing the game. It helps that she’s cute. Huh, I have a crush on my partner… don’t I?”

 

That _would_ explain the mess his feelings were in, wouldn’t it? Well, maybe now that he’d figured it out his emotions would settle down.

 


	16. Unpleasant Truths Unveiled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kirito learns something that makes him quite angry.

Kirito ignored the Icon telling him he had an unread message for a moment as he chewed on the wonderful lunch Asuna had made for them to share. He wanted to finish lunch before anything could ruin his good mood.  
  
  
“So, Kirito-kun, what were you doing with that book?” Asuna asked, taking a small bite of her sandwich.  
  
  
He swallowed, putting his own down, “I was doing a [Translation Quest].”  
  
  
“What are those?” she asked curiously.  
  
  
“There are some books that you have to take passages from for something else, the best way to remember is to have to transcribe them from the book to an item that you take with you.” Kirito struggled to explain, “And since all the books in this game are in… [Lunarian], you have to translate them into Japanese.”  
  
  
Asuna gave him a searching look, “And these passages can be anything?”  
  
  
“Almost,” he shrugged, finishing his sandwich.  
  
  
“A lot of them have to do with Military or,” he paused, shrugging again, “Or Royal duties, not that we [Beta Testers] ever figured out why.”  
  
  
“You going to read that message?” Asuna asked, taking a sip from her wine glass.  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, tapping the icon. “It’s from Heathcliff,” he said. “Wonder what… it’s... about.”  
  
  
“What’s up, Kirito-kun?”  
  
  
“He finally had the time to read the message Beryl sent,” Kirito said. “And he wants me to meet him in the Town of Beginnings.”  
  
  
“B-but...” Asuna stuttered for a moment, “Why does he want to meet just you on the first floor?”  
  
  
Kirito shook his head. “I don’t know, but…” He frowned at the message. “Asuna, get Kizmel and Lux, we’re all taking a little trip.”  
  
  
Asuna blinked. “Alright,” she finished her drink and got up, “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”  
  
  
Kirito stared at the message some more before sending a reply saying he will be there. _But if you think I’m going to just follow blindly, you have another thing coming, Heathcliff,_ he thought. _We might need to meet in private, but I’m bringing the others with me at least that far._  
  
  
What could he possibly want? If the meeting wasn’t going to be about Kunzite… then why meet at all? This was a chance to get rid of one of the generals that commanded the Youma that killed his parents. If he met Kunzite, he was going to try his hardest to take the bastard down. If the rumors he had started hearing about them all being corpses were true… then he’d just be putting a dead man back in his grave.  
  
  
He sighed, leaning back in his seat. “What is this about?” abruptly, he stood, checking that he had everything, he pulled out the sharpening stone and got to work. Something simple to do as he gathered his thoughts. _Heh, looks like I found a use for them after all,_ he thought as he continued to sharpen his sword as he waited for the others.  


* * *

  
Heathcliff was mildly amused when he saw the groups with Kirito. First was the girl who happened to be the reincarnated Princess Serenity, Asuna, who was actually pointing things out to Kizmel, who actually looked curious. Unsurprising, as the Town of Beginnings, while based on Seran Dael, the largest city in the original Aincrad that he wasn’t sure still existed, was still wildly different.  
  
  
Kizmel wasn’t being obvious about it, but she was keeping a closer eye on Asuna and Kirito than before. She would ensure that her duties as the Princess’ bodyguard were properly discharged, simulated environment or no.  
  
  
The other one with them was a girl who he didn’t know, but the fact that she was trying to match Kirito’s posture with mixed success, and was sporting a similar weapon, a [Longsword], made him wonder if she was trying to become his apprentice. If she was, then she could do worse than try to emulate him.  
  
  
Then there was the second group trailing them. He spotted Beryl and the girl who was the reborn Sailor Saturn, Persephone. Keeping to the shadows, but not making much effort to hide herself, was Argo. And he saw Klein, who a private message that Beryl sent to him explaining that he was the reincarnated Kunzite, who was leading four players. There was something about them and… oh, those were four of the reincarnated Seven Great Youma, whom Beryl had kept from Kunzite’s clutches. Apparently they wanted nothing to do with the Dark Kingdom, and had been ready to fight to keep it that way.  
  
  
He almost didn’t notice them coming to a stop.  
  
  
“Heathcliff,” Kirito said. “I’m here as you asked.”  
  
  
“I believe I said that I wanted to meet with just you, [Commander],” Heathcliff said.  
  
  
“And we can do so,” Kirito replied. “But unless it is something that needs to be kept private, I think the others can hear it.”  
  
  
“This is a matter that is rather… personal, [Commander],” Heathcliff said.  
  
  
Kirito looked at him carefully. “How personal are we talking about?” He asked.  
  
  
“Very,” Heathcliff replied. “I have a means so that we won’t be overheard, so everyone present can observe, but this is something that is best kept private. Afterward, you can tell whomever you like if you wish to do so.”  
  
  
“The way you’re talking, it’s like you’re about to reveal that you’re his long-lost brother,” Klein snarked.  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes widened, “Dale, hit Klein over the head for me please, I’m too far away.” He said.  
  
  
Heathcliff looked at Kirito, ignoring Klein’s yelp, and observed him.  
  
  
“You are, aren’t you?” Asuna said, her expression becoming shocked. “But… he was orphaned by a…”  
  
  
“No,” Kirito interrupted. “My _parents_ were killed, but that didn’t mean… no way. How could I have- you… you… _where the hell have you been?!_ ”  
  
  
Heathcliff flinched at the expected reaction.  
  
  
Asuna slid her arms around Kirito’s chest and hugged him tightly. “Let him speak, Kirito-kun,” she said softly into his ear.  
  
  
Kirito met Heathcliff’s eyes, his own blazing. “Explain, _now_.” He ordered.  
  
  
“I had thought you were killed in the attack, and Aunt Midori’s saying she had taken you in… I thought she and uncle had simply decided to adopt,” he said. “I had thrown myself into my work, finishing top of my class at Touto University, studying under Professor Shigemura, and…” He took a deep breath and brought out the GM menu and input some commands. Everyone blinked as the ambient noise virtually disappeared.  
  
  
“I had thrown myself into developing SAO,” he continued. “The Youma attacks were continuing, and the Senshi were barely maintaining a stalemate. They needed something to help them out. They needed an army. One that is equipped and trained to fight the Youma.”  
  
  
Kirito took a deep breath, putting a shaking hand on one of Asuna’s arms. She hugged tighter, the moon on his scarf blazing brightly.  
  
  
“Why, why me?” He asked.  
  
  
“Because I only found out today,” Heathcliff said quietly.  
  
  
Kirito took another deep, less shaky breath, “You chose me because I don’t panic when shit hits the fan, not because I’m your brother,” his shoulders relaxed slightly, “You can’t take it back, you know, Brother.”  
  
  
Heathcliff nodded.  
  
  
“You might as well fill them all in on what’s really going on, Captain,” Beryl said.  
  
  
Kirito turned, “Beryl?” he met his brother’s eyes again, “What is she talking about, Brother?”  
  
  
“This place, Aincrad, is based on a place that once was and if we’re fortunate, still is,” Heathcliff said. “The only reason I know this, and designed this place like it is because I have the dubious honor of being the reincarnation of a man long dead.”  
  
  
“And he’s not the only one,” Beryl said. “My choice of name is no coincidence, and I noticed that you were nervous when you heard it. So you know about her, if only rumors.” She got a savage expression on her face. “If I ever get my hands on that animated corpse using my name, I am going to make sure she _stays_ dead. Lots of fire might be involved.”  
  
  
Heathcliff chuckled, “I think Mars will love you once she gets over the shock, Lady Beryl.” He looked Asuna in the eye. “Including myself and Lady Beryl here, there are nine others that I know of. Six of them are here at this time.”  
  
  
Asuna returned the look. “And I’m one of them, is that so?”  
  
  
“Why yes, Your Highness,” Heathcliff smiled softly. “She was reputed to have crazy ideas that actually worked, almost every single time. Our Princess…”  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes dilated as she remembered all the strange and sometimes _downright stupid_ ideas she’d been having. She shook her head, “I can’t be!” she ducked behind her partner. Kirito called her Hime, but that was only because she allowed it! She couldn’t be a reincarnation! She wasn’t a princess. Sure she was an upper class girl with training on how to be a lady, but there was no way…  
  
  
“You are frightening her, brother. _Stop_.”  
  
  
Heathcliff blinked, “Kirito…”  
  
  
“How bad was it for you, when it became clear to you that you were a reincarnation?” Kirito asked. “How hard was it for you to accept it? How afraid were you that you would _become_ him?”  
  
  
Heathcliff paused in his intended rebuttal. Those… were valid questions. Ones that hit close to home.  
  
  
“She’s a reincarnated princess?” Kirito asked. “ _So what?_ That doesn’t matter in this time period. It doesn’t _define_ her. She’s _Asuna_ here. No more, no less.”  
  
  
“And everything else?” Heathcliff pointedly asked. “Even if she didn’t find out now, it would only be a matter of time when the memories of her past life start to invade her dreams, if they already hadn’t begun to.” He sighed. “Better she know them for what they are now, memories of a past life. Some of them… are not going to be good ones, and it’s best she be prepared for them.”  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes widened from where she was hiding behind her partner. That dream of running away… that man that wasn’t her partner...  
  
  
“You’re forgetting that she’s not alone,” Kirito growled, “We have been travelling together for the last seven weeks. And if I have my way, we’ll _still_ be partners by the time this game ends.”  
  
  
“I can handle anything she needs me to.” he finished. “If that was all you wanted to say, Brother?” He hadn’t moved since Asuna had ducked behind him. “There is still one place that I need to take my Asuna-hime, before we head back to the Front Lines of Floor Eight.”  
  
  
As he turned, wrapping an arm around his partner and led her away with Kizmel following at a discreet distance, Beryl and Klein exchanged glances.  
  
  
“So…” Klein turned to look at Heathcliff, “I’d say that went well.”  
  
  
Beryl couldn’t control her giggling, “If you say so, _Kunzite_ ,” she teased.  
  
  
“Oi!”  
  
  
Heathcliff sighed, “Kazu took that better than I thought he would…” The Princess’ reaction however… not so much.  
  
  
Not that there was any gentler way to break it to someone, and he considered it better to let her know now, when it was still early. Her actions over the last several weeks demonstrated that many aspects of Princess Serenity were beginning to manifest. He had almost lost himself to Captain Heathcliff, and he had no doubt that the others had to deal with that as well. At least she would be aware of it, and reconciling the two aspects would, hopefully, be easier than it had been with him.  


* * *

  
Kirito hugged his shaking partner from behind not far from where Heathcliff had wanted the meeting, “She will _never_ define who you are, and that is only if my brother is correct.” he rubbed one of her trembling arms, “It will never matter to me if you are or not. This changes _nothing_ , you are my wonderful, powerful, partner.”  
  
  
She turned to look up at him, “You’re sure?”  
  
  
He nodded, giving her a reassuring smile, “You are Asuna. You will not ever be anyone else, not to me.”  
  
  
The gold flecks reflected brightly in his smiling eyes and Asuna finally hid her face in his shoulder. What had she done to deserve such a person as her best friend, as her partner? “I don’t deserve you, Kirito-kun. You are so wonderful…”  
  
  
“Not as wonderful as you are,” he whispered, petting her hair.  
  
  
Gods help her, she was gradually falling in love with her best friend… she snuggled closer, hiding her bright red cheeks.  


* * *

  
Argo looked from where Kirito and Asuna had disappeared to Heathcliff before making her decision, “There will _never_ be enough col in this game to buy this information off me,” she deadpanned. “And _no one else_ is to be spreading this either!”  
  
  
[The Rat] glared at the rest of the players in the small silent area, “ _Do I make myself clear_?”  
  
  
Klein, Beryl, and Persephone all flinched slightly, “Yes Argo.”  
  
  
Lux looked confused, “Why? Not that anyone will hear any of this from me or anything…”  
  
  
“I am Argo, the [Information Broker],” the girl smirked, “The [Spy Master] according to a Quest that I’m helping Kii-bou with.”  
  
  
They all turned to Heathcliff, who’d been silent since the two top Players had left. “What do you think, Captain?” Klein asked.  
  
  
“About what?” Heathcliff asked. “Argo is right, this information shouldn’t get out.” He paused, “Argo, I believe you have a pool going on when Kirito and Asuna will be married?”  
  
  
“Perhaps,” Argo drew the word out, “Why?”  
  
  
“I can tell that my brother is smitten with our Princess,” he grinned, a plan forming in his head, “Put me down for a thousand col, when we reach Floor Twenty-Two.”  
  
  
Argo’s eyes narrowed, “What are you planning, [Game Master]?”  
  
  
“You’ll see.”  
  
  
They all gave him curious looks.  
  
  
Klein’s eyes narrowed, “All right, I’ll bite, What are you doing?”  
  
  
“Making up for not being there.” Heathcliff’s grin scared them all, “By making sure he’s happy.”  
  
  
Klein slowly turned to Argo, “...Put me down for the twenty second floor as well, Argo.”  
  
  
Argo eyed him, “Does that go for everyone here?”  
  
  
“Yes.” was the resounding answer.  
  
  
“Alright…”  


* * *

  
Asuna shoved that little voice telling her that everything Heathcliff had said was true out of her head, her grip on Kirito’s hand tightening as they came across the tiny sandy oasis on the second floor. “So this is where?”  
  
  
“Yes, this is where I became the [Commander] by my own merit,” Kirito gave her the softest smile he could, “Shall we go down?”  
  
  
She nodded silently, letting him take the lead. She’d smile for him, he was her rock, the only constant she seemed to have.  
  
  
“I’m not sure how I should treat my brother,” he told her, “I have very hazy memories of him, teaching me to speak, all those things that brothers were supposed to do, I half remember little word games that we’d play.”  
  
  
“What kind of words?” Asuna asked curiously.  
  
  
“Words that were very hard to say, hard to pronounce.” He pulled her close as they slid down the loosely packed sand.  
  
  
“Like what?”  
  
  
He frowned, “Like: Ek fleygja þrír geirr muspilli.” He coughed, becoming slightly tongue tied. “I very vaguely remember Aki saying that I should only use these words if I was ever in trouble, and that I had to believe that they would save me with every fiber of my being.”  
  
  
Asuna blinked, “What language is that in?”  
  
  
Kirito shrugged as he pulled her into the limestone cave, “I have no idea, I think he called them Words of Power, but I have no idea why. And I can’t even remember if he ever explained it.”  
  
  
“Then let’s not think about it anymore,” she snuggled close, walking side by side with him as they came to the well lit chamber. “This place is amazing…”  
  
  
“There are hieroglyphs on all the walls,” Kirito replied, eying the small platform where he knew the [Historian] stood. “And the NPC should be…”  
  
  
“Greetings, [Commander],” a woman said, seemingly appearing out of nowhere.  
  
  
“Setsuna,” Kirito replied dryly, “I notice that you have a tendency to pop up out of nowhere.”  
  
  
“Why, [Commander], I have no idea what you mean,” the NPC said in a light, almost teasing tone.  
  
  
“Right,” he dragged the word out, “Just like I haven’t heard rumors that the real Pluto likes to sneak up on her teammates when the situation allows it.”  
  
  
“Argo does the same thing,” he gave her a serious look as Asuna peeked out from behind him.  
  
  
Setsuna perked up, “Who did you bring to see me, [Commander]?”  
  
  
“I demanded that he bring me to meet you,” Asuna spoke, stepping out from behind Kirito.  
  
  
Setsuna seemed to glitch for a moment, “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, [Princess].”  
  
  
Asuna gave a startled squeak. Why did they all think…  
  
  
Setsuna’s smile softened, “I see you’ve already met with Captain Heathcliff.”  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed. “I would ask how, but it’s really you, isn’t it?” He asked. “Sailor Pluto.”  
  
  
“I’m not sure if I should be surprised that you figured it out or not, [Commander], you are the Captain’s younger brother after all,” She smiled, “Yes, I am indeed the real thing, but I am not actually playing the game. I’m much too busy.”  
  
  
“How?” Asuna asked and then shook her head. “What would one of the Senshi want with us?”  
  
  
“I wouldn’t be surprised if she helped a little with the development of the game,” Kirito said. “There have always been rumors that she knows more than she lets on. Some of the rumors indicate that she might be able to…” He looked at Setsuna.  
  
  
Setsuna grinned brightly, “There is a reason that I call myself the Senshi of Time and Space.”  
  
  
Kirito rubbed the bridge of his nose. “You knew all this was going to happen,” he said. “But… no, you probably didn’t prevent what happened because doing so might make things worse. Or because you can’t act directly with things you know that haven’t happened.”  
  
  
“Smart boy,” Setsuna nodded. “There are a few very strict laws that I must obey, or I die,” she said “Or worse. Those rules are there for a good reason, as I am sure you can surmise.”  
  
  
Kirito nodded. “Well, aside from that, why are you talking to us?” He asked.  
  
  
Setsuna sighed. “Because you need to know this,” she said, looking at them. “For all that it looks like the Senshi are holding their own, there are only seven of us. One hasn’t awakened, and it is best that it happens in its own time, rather than it be forced.”  
  
  
“Forced?” Asuna breathed. “Then you…”  
  
  
“Forcing her to awaken, rather than doing so naturally, can have dire consequences,” Setsuna said. “Consequences which tend to be of the world ending nature.”  
  
  
Kirito thought about it. “There are only two planets missing from your team, the Earth, which I’m not sure about… but the only other one you could be speaking of would be… Saturn?”  
  
  
Setsuna nodded. “Yes, I am speaking of her,” she said. “I know where she is, and hope that what is being done will give her the slow awakening of her powers that she needs. Of all of us, she needs to learn to control it the most, or have a viable alternative so that she doesn’t have to use it.”  
  
  
Kirito nodded, looking thoughtful. “I would ask if she is in here, but that probably falls under information you can’t reveal,” he said.  
  
  
“Or you would be better served figuring it out, yourself,” Setsuna said. “I have learned that having all the answers and giving them freely can make someone dependent on you, rather than them learning how to obtain the answers themselves.”  
  
  
Kirito nodded in understanding. “That does not mean that we won’t hate you for being tight lipped every once in awhile.” He said.  
  
  
Setsuna smirked. “Oh, I know that, but we’ve digressed on this tangent long enough,” she said and then got a serious expression on her face. “As I said earlier, it might seem as if the Senshi are holding their own against the Dark Kingdom, but there are few of us, and we can’t be everywhere. At best, we’re in a stalemate, but we have been fighting the Dark Kingdom for eight years in most cases. One, Sailor Venus, has been doing it for more than a decade. And it is only a matter of time when the need to be constantly alert for Youma activity becomes too much, and we exhaust ourselves.”  
  
  
Now that he thought about it, Kirito could see the bags under her eyes. “So they can afford to play the long game,” he said. “Do enough to keep you exhausting yourselves until you start making mistakes.”  
  
  
Setsuna sighed, “It’s true,Venus, Mercury, and I are feeling it the most acutely,” she grimaced, “If something isn’t done, [Princess],” she looked Asuna in the eye, “You will start having to replace us, maybe even before this game ends.”  
  
  
Asuna took a step back, shaking her head.  
  
  
Setsuna smiled sadly, “I do not mean to frighten you.” she shook her head, “You are not her in the truest sense. You are not Princess Serenity. Who you are, is the girl who has the dubious honor of being her reincarnation, and due to factors that even I don’t understand, you are essentially her successor. Being the Princess is important, that makes you our leader. But don’t worry, Asuna, you have more than a year to get used to it, and what you do with it is still up to you.”  


* * *

  
Michiru gave Minako a curious look, “You’re sure about this?”  
  
  
“Pluto verified,” the chestnut haired young woman replied.  
  
  
The Senshi of Neptune nodded, “I see, well, this is possibly some of the best news we could have been given.”  
  
  
“We still need to get them down, remember?” Minako reminded her.  
  
  
Michiru huffed, “I think you should leave Haruka and I down here.”  
  
  
“Why is that?”  
  
  
Michiru snorted, “You really want to leave the planet undefended?” she crossed her arms over her chest, “We might not be the best for taking on Youma like the four of you are, but we are better than nothing. Go retrieve Kizmel and Tilnel, Haruka and I will hold down the fort while you’re gone.”  
  
  
Minako nodded in assent eventually, “You’re right, just make sure to be extra careful, we shouldn’t be gone more than a few hours probably. But I don’t know if we’ll need more than one trip or not to get them both down.”  


* * *

  
Kayaba walked into the GM area and sat down in his seat. If he was going to win the bet he placed, he would have to stack the deck, and he believed that Cardinal would approve of this. “Cardinal, I am going to let Yui and Strea out, soon, can you check on them please?”  
  
  
“You’re going to let them out now, Master?” the AI asked, opening another window.  
  
  
“Not quite yet.” Kayaba replied, he rubbed his hands together as he pulled up the GM account he’s set up for his brother, there were some modifications to make.  
  
  
She brought up a window showing the two MHCP’s containment areas and expanded it, “Master, I think you need to see this.”  
  
  
Kayaba blinked as he looked up and over to the new window, “What?” They’d modified themselves? ...Perhaps this would work better than he had even planned…  
  
  
Still, Yui and Strea were adorable. They looked like little princesses, a beautiful mixture of his brother and Princess. Their perfect daughters…  
  
  
But he could see the errors that were piling up around them, and that wouldn’t do. They needed some cleaning up. And really, he should not have neglected them in the first place, but keeping the Players alive had been more important at the time.  
  
  
He’d let them keep their new avatars, now he had to deal with Clean up. “Are they watching the game Cardinal?” He noticed Yui looking at something.  


* * *

  
Lisbeth sighed as another potential customer passed her by, wondering what she was doing wrong. She had set up shop, offering her blacksmithing services, as well as selling weapons she crafted, but few customers would come by to browse, or have her do even basic repairs. The weapons she could understand, chances were that there was better to be found, but making something that is better than what can be bought was a rare thing at this low a level, let alone from drops.  
  
  
She was working hard to make her weapons, so not getting any business was kind of disheartening. But she kind of understood.  
  
  
It wasn’t her fault that her face made her look younger than she actually was. That didn’t mean that it wasn’t annoying as hell though.  
  
  
What could she do to get more business? Even as she thought about the question her mind came up blank. She could probably change what she wore, but she was a _blacksmith_ damn it, and she should dress the part. If she had a store, or at least a proper stall, to sell any weapons she made, she might reconsider, but she was sitting on an unrolled leather mat with her anvil in front of her.  
  
  
_Yeah no, I’m not flashing my panties as I work,_ she thought. _The guys would like it, the perverts, but I’m not that kind of girl._  
  
  
She tended toward being tomboyish, but her friends and acquaintances from school knew that she did have a girly streak. She liked sports, wasn’t afraid of getting dirty, and could girl it up with the best of them when she felt like it.  
  
  
“Oh, we should upgrade our gear don’t we?” She knew that voice, who was that? Lisbeth perked up, looking from side to side, to try and find the speaker.  
  
  
She saw players walking down, Asuna next to… wait a minute. She took a harder look at the pair. _I don’t believe it, it_ is _Asuna. What’s she doing trapped in here? She has often said that she has no time for games._  
  
  
“[Dark Sun] needs a few repairs that I can’t make with those kits we found,” her companion replied, “Most of the ‘Smiths seem to be busy though.” He frowned, “How about we ask her?”  
  
  
Lisbeth blinked as she realized he was pointing at her, and then saw Asuna turn her attention in her direction. The sight of her boggling in surprise at her was amusing.  
  
  
“Hey Asuna,” she called out. “Been awhile.”  
  
  
“Rika?!” Asuna asked in shock. “What are you doing here?”  
  
  
“I take it you know each other from somewhere?” the boy next to Asuna asked in amusement.  
  
  
“Rika and I go to the same school,” Asuna explained, her cheeks red from embarrassment. “Not in the same class, but we have mutual acquaintances.”  
  
  
“Huh,” he grinned, “She looks like a girl playing with her father’s tools, but I bet she’s actually quite good.”  
  
  
Lisbeth growled at being compared to looking like a girl playing with her father’s tools, but calmed down when he said that she was skilled at what she did. So she wouldn’t threaten to take her hammer to his skull.  
  
  
He stepped forward, “So, Asuna-hime and I need some repair work and upgrades done, and we have all the mats and materials needed, What do you say?” he crouched down to eye level with her, “You willing to try?”  
  
  
He pulled his sword from its sheath and held it out for her to take, “Mine’s a bit on the heavy side, so be careful, I wouldn’t want one of my partner’s friends to get hurt on accident.”  
  
  
“And I will hurt you if you continue to be a patronizing ass,” Lisbeth retorted as she took the blade in her hands and braced for the weight. When he let go, she felt the full weight of the sword and was glad that he warned her. Most swords of that size were at most two kilos in weight, this one felt quite a bit heavier than that, maybe four or five kilos. If she hadn’t expected it, she could see herself easily dropping it, or banging her hands on the anvil, rather than lowering it smoothly and easily. “Okay, I take it back, thanks for the warning. How can this weigh twice as much as a sword its size and make should?” She mused to herself.  
  
  
“Kirito-kun, that wasn’t very nice.” Asuna gave him a glare.  
  
  
“I wasn’t trying to be mean Asu-hime…” he grumbled, looking away from her. “You know her, so I really didn’t want her to get hurt, Lux almost hurt herself when she tried [Dark Sun] out, remember. Most other players don’t upgrade the way I do so their equipment is relatively light compared to mine.”  
  
  
Kirito smiled as he turned back to Lisbeth, “Durability makes a blade heavier, so far I have three for durability and three for sharpness. For a plus six enhancement.”  
  
  
Lisbeth nodded, filing that away. “Why so much in durability?” She asked curiously.  
  
  
“I don’t want my sword to break on me in the middle of a battle if I can avoid it,” Kirito said. “I mean sure, I have other blades, but bringing one out of your inventory in the middle of battle is not the easiest thing to find time for. The added weight also adds some striking power as well, increasing the chance to stagger a mob.”  
  
  
“And what do you use Asuna?” Lisbeth asked as she got to work on repairing the sword.  
  
  
“I use a rapier, Rika,” Asuna replied as she watched her work.  
  
  
“Ah, right, I should tell you, it’s Lisbeth here,” Lisbeth said. “I don’t mind you using Rika, but we’re in public. You can call me Liz if you like.”  
  
  
“Understood, Liz,” Asuna grinned impishly. “This is Kirito-kun, he saved my life in the first floor dungeon.”  
  
  
“I keep telling you, anyone else would have done the same…” Kirito mumbled his cheeks going pink. “This is a [Death Game] there are not going to be very many that are stupid enough to become murderers, especially after I made it clear what I thought and felt about it on the fifth floor…”  
  
  
_And what he would do to those who did, I don’t doubt,_ Lisbeth thought.  
  
  
“You are too modest, Kirito-kun,” Asuna wagged a finger in his face, “Besides, you’re my Best Friend now.”  
  
  
_Oho,_ Lisbeth thought with a smirk. _Can it be that the school’s rich girl is developing a crush on someone? About time._ She knew that the rumors about Asuna being frigid, a lesbian, or even asexual were complete bull. Asuna’s treatment of the rumors when she found out about them was to give them the attention they deserved. None at all. But to see for herself that Asuna was falling for a boy who was, probably, up to a year younger than her was something that she would file away. If Argo didn’t already know, she could make a pretty col from this.  
  
  
Hey, she liked her luxuries, and inns with a bath, or an attached bathhouse, did not come cheap.  
  
  
Kirito snatched her hand, “Don’t do that. You’re just promising more than you can deliver, _my Asuna-hime_ …” he gave her a playful smirk.  
  
  
Asuna blushed brightly, “There you go again! What are you talking about?” She protested, trying to pull her hand away from his gentle grip, her hand sliding out of his with more ease than she really expected. “What are these promises you keep talking about?” she pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.  
  
  
“If you two are done flirting I’m done with your sword, Kirito,” Lisbeth said drily. She smirked as the two of them blushed.  
  
  
Kirito took his sword back and inspected it, “Wonderfully done, I have no idea why you don’t have more customers, Liz.” He gave her a lopsided grin. “This is excellent work.”  
  
  
Liz blushed as Asuna stepped forward, handing her Rapier over. “Thank you Kirito.”  
  
  
Asuna turned back to her partner, determined to find out what he was on about.  
  
  
“I still can’t believe how innocent you are,” Kirito shook his head in amusement. “It’s not a topic to discuss in public, Hime.”  
  
  
“Alright, but you’d better give me a straight answer soon, Kirito-kun,” she hissed, turning back to Liz.  
  
  
Liz found herself quite amused by the pair. What were they? A married couple? “And your rapier’s done Asuna, come again!” she put the cutest smile on her face that she could.  
  
  
Kirito grinned, “We’ll spread the word about how good you are, might put in a word with Argo too,” he wrapped an arm around Asuna’s middle and they walked away.  
  
  
“I gotta see what the betting pool for them is,” Lisbeth mumbled to herself. “And how I can get in on it.”


	17. Exodus after the Campaign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Elven War Campaign Quest comes to a close.

Asuna threw herself into the charge wholeheartedly, easily sidestepping the crash of the Boss’s huge axe. With a battle cry, echoed by her partner as he caught up, she jumped over a low attack.  
  
  
Together they hit the Boss, [Caerennus the Untamed], and went through it. Neither of them were panting as much as they could have been.  
  
  
“I hate Centaurs,” Asuna growled irritably as she slid her sword back into its sheath. “So, onto floor nine right?” she asked, turning to her partner.  
  
  
“Yep, and the last leg of the [Elven War Campaign]. The castle we get to visit is amazing,” Kirito grinned, “Shall we go open the floor?”  
  
  
“Yeah, let’s go.” Asuna agreed.  


* * *

  
When they emerged from the tower, they were met with huge trees, even bigger than the ones that had been on the third floor. Asuna noticed that her partner had a strange look on his face, “What is it?”  
  
  
“I almost feel like we’ve walked into a classic Anime,” he replied, his voice thoughtful, “I mean, it always felt that way, the floor hasn’t really changed at all, but my instincts are still screaming…”  
  
  
He started walking, “Come on, let’s go. Best not keep anyone waiting.”  
  
  
She giggled, running off after him, “Kirito-kun, you’re It!” she tagged his shoulder and dashed past him.  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, “Really Asuna?” he ran after her.  
  
  
Something caused her to stop cold, a roar of rage. She turned her sharp eyes trying to find what had interrupted their fun.  
  
  
Kirito came up behind her, “Above!” a moment later his arm snaked around her middle and she was pulled to the side and down.  
  
  
When she looked up, she saw a tail, pushed deep into the earth and stuck there, snarling, was some kind of dragon. It didn’t have any obvious wings and its chest began to glow as it got ready to spit fire at them.  
  
  
Asuna rolled one way and Kirito rolled the other as the dragon spewed flames at where they were. What to do…? Asuna’s eyes narrowed as a crazy idea formed in her head. She tried to ignore it, to push it aside, but she couldn’t, “Kirito-kun, feeling up to trying something crazy again?”  
  
  
“That depends on how crazy your idea is, Hime,” he replied. “I’m willing to try almost anything.”  
  
  
“Good, because one of us needs to get at the underside of the tail.”  
  
  
Kirito spared her a quick look, “The underside of the tail?” he looked back to the Dragon, it was trying to tug its tail out of the ground but was having no success. “Alright, I can see that, but what about after?”  
  
  
“If you go for the tail, I can go for the chest.” Asuna wet her suddenly dry lips, “Or, if you want, I can go for the tail while you go for the chest, but we have to decide soon.”  
  
  
“Alright,” Kirito took a deep breath, “You grab the tail, I’ll slice its chest open!”  
  
  
Asuna nodded silently and leaning forward, she shot toward the dragon like a bullet. Nimbly jumping over the writhing head of the mob, she twisted, bringing her rapier point down, slicing the underside of the tail deeply.  
  
  
The dragon mob reared up, roaring in pain and Kirito took his chance. While he wasn’t quite as fast as Asuna, he didn’t need to be, his stats were balanced between speed and strength, that meant that he hit _harder_ , which was kind of important right now.  
  
  
Not even bothering to use a [Sword Skill], he thrust his sword deeply into the dragon’s chest, bringing it down with as much strength as he could muster. He hadn’t been lying when he said he could be whatever Asuna needed, now he just had to prove it.  
  
  
The dragon burst into light as it died and Kirito relaxed.  
  
  
“Um… Kirito-kun?”  
  
  
He turned, “Yes Asu-hime?” he asked, his eyes softening in concern when he noticed the fright in hers.  
  
  
“I… how did I know how to… the plan just… I’m not...” She began.  
  
  
Kirito walked over to her and gave her a light embrace. “Shhh… don’t worry about it,” he said soothingly. “You’re not her. You just have bits of her knowledge and her memories in you. True, some of that and her personality has bled through in here, but let me ask you something.”  
  
She looked at him.  
  
  
“Princess Serenity was _familiar_ with the Aincrad that was, the same Aincrad which inspired my brother to make this place,” Kirito said. “And that familiarity has been useful to you, hasn’t it?”  
  
  
Asuna reluctantly nodded.  
  
  
“Then use it,” Kirito said. “That’s no different than my brother taking what he remembered and making this game in the first place. It’s still knowledge that you have. Knowledge that we might be able to use to save lives.” he flicked her nose, “Don’t shun that part of you.”  
  
  
“Alright,” she looked back at where the dragon had been and then back up at him, “We were told she was crazy though, so don’t blame me when I suggest crazy ideas!”  
  
  
“Hey,” he gave her an easy grin, “If crazy works…”  
  
  
Despite the tears in her eyes, Asuna giggled, “Yeah, if crazy works…”  
  
  
Kirito could tell that though he’d lifted her spirits, she was still worried over something. “Hey, as Pluto said, you still have more than a year. She knows how long it will take for us to free ourselves, even if she can’t say.” he tugged gently on a lock of her hair. “Remember, I said late 2024, so you really have closer to two years to get used to it. Nearly two years to assimilate the knowledge being her reincarnation gives you. And I’m here to keep you grounded while her memories surface, which my brother didn’t have.” he linked arms with her, “Now let’s go.”  
  
  
She dried her tears, nodding, “Right.”  


* * *

  
Nezha looked at his guildmates, “What are we going to do to make up for what we did on the second floor, that was a really bad idea, remember?”  
  
  
Orlando sighed, “You’ve caught up really fast since you did that Quest, but you’re right, we have to do something. I suppose we should all just be happy that we weren’t exposed.”  
  
  
Nezha shook his head, “[The Beater], Kirito said that the rest of the players would try to kill us, which is why he kept it under wraps. I wouldn’t be surprised if others suspect, though.” He looked thoughtful, “I’m not sure what we could do.” He opened his menu and blinked when he came upon his skills, “What if… What if we became a guild of Blacksmiths?”  
  
  
Gilgamesh leaned forward, “Warrior Blacksmiths?”  
  
  
Nezha grinned, “Something like that. After all, that was what we were doing, taking the weapons that way,” he paused to put his thoughts in order, “But why not? I mean, we’d be giving back to everyone we’d taken from.”  
  
  
Enkidou nodded thoughtfully, “I like that idea, and it’s something that we don’t have to rely on others to get mats because we are fighters ourselves.”  
  
  
“And we will have the skills to match our gear,” Orlando nodded.  
  
  
Beowulf opened his menu. “But do we all have an open slot for it?” He asked “I do.”  
  
  
“If someone doesn’t, he can wait until he levels up to get one,” Orlando said, flipping through the guidebook that all new players were advised to obtain, and which still remained useful even after the first floor. “We’re all under level twenty still, and a new skill slot opens then. After that, though, it will slow down to gaining a new one every ten levels.” He closed the book. “If needed, we can go back down to the third floor and farm up some [Crystal Bottles of Kales’Oh] from the [Forest Elven Hallowed Knights] and replace a skill that we can add back later, and not lose the progress made on that skill. Good thing we didn’t pick sides in the [Campaign Quest].”  
  
  
“Yeah, I’m glad we stayed away from that,” Nezha grinned, “So then, who has a slot open?”  
  
  
Cu chulainn raised his hand, “I do. I haven’t decided what to pick yet so I’ll just pick up Blacksmithing now.”  
  
  
“I think you’re the only one,” Enkidou snarked.  
  
  
“Lucky me then, I guess,” Cu snarked back, as he manipulated his menu to choose the [Blacksmith] skill.  
  
  
Nezha blinked when he got a message, “What’s this?” It was from Kirito. “Wonder what Kirito’s got to say…”  


* * *

  
Liz blinked when she looked up to see several people giving her curious looks, “Who are you?”  
  
  
One of them shuffled nervously before steadying himself. “We are the [Legend Braves],” he said.  
  
  
Liz raised an eyebrow, “And that should mean something to me… why?”  
  
  
The one who had spoken sighed, “I’m Nezha, and we’d like some pointers on blacksmithing,” he said. “Kirito highly recommended you.”  
  
  
Liz stared, _What have Kirito and Asuna been saying about me?_ She wondered. “Uh, Ok, Why don’t you all sit down and I can get you started on the basics?” _Kirito, you owe me big time for this!_  
  
  
Nezha didn’t need this so much, but he’d gone to be moral support for the others. “You’re really good at this, uh,” Oops, they’d forgotten to ask for her name! “Lisbeth, right?”  
  
  
“That’s me,” the fifteen year old replied, “So, why do you all want to do this?”  
  
  
“We were tricked into running a Blacksmithing scam back on the second floor. Since then we’ve been trying to think of a way to make up for it. But well, we’ve had no luck so far.”  
  
  
“Wait… that was you?” Liz grimaced. This was something that she didn’t expect, but… a plan began to form in her mind. “I think I can help you…"  


* * *

  
Kirito grinned as he led Asuna through the forest, “These forests are fun to play in, but dangerous, I’m pretty sure I recognize exactly what that was.”  
  
  
“Then what was it?” Asuna asked curiously.  
  
  
“A [Land Dragon] from one of the old Mecha Anime.” he shrugged, “I wonder if they might be indigenous to the real Aincrad, if it’s still around.”  
  
  
“...But aren’t Mecha Anime all about, I don’t know… space travel or something?” Asuna gave him a confused look.  
  
  
“Not this one,” Kirito replied, “This one is, unique.”  
  
  
“Are you going to tell me what Anime it is?”  
  
  
He laughed, “I doubt you would recognize it.”  
  
  
She shrugged, “If nothing else it might give us something to watch once we get out, before we get discharged.”  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, “If you say so…” He leaned towards her and whispered the name in her ear.  
  
  
Asuna blinked, “You’re right, that _is_ an old one…” She giggled, “That is actually one of my brother’s old favorites, though I never got to watch it.”  
  
  
Kirito chuckled, “I did some research when we got to this floor in the [Beta] and ended up watching the first episode out of curiosity, but I don’t think I ever got any farther than that.”  
  
  
“Well then, will you watch it with me when we get out?” Asuna asked hopefully.  
  
  
He rolled his eyes again, “Why wouldn’t I? I actually liked the first episode a lot, I just never found time to watch the rest of it.”  


* * *

  
Setsuna stepped into the meeting room in the Hikawa Shrine, “It’s almost time.”  
  
  
“How will we know?” Makoto asked.  
  
  
“Captain Heathcliff said he’d call as soon as the quest was over,” Setsuna pulled out her phone, “I am expecting him to call within the next day or so. With the least amount of time being a couple of hours from now.”  
  
  
"Then we need to be ready to leave?" Minako asked from her seat.  
  
  
“Within the next few hours at the earliest,” Setsuna agreed.  
  
  
“Can you at least tell us where we’re going, or do we need to get some lunar maps out?” Rei asked, getting up.  
  
  
“I will need a map,” Setsuna nodded, “And I think I need to check the Gates, to make sure I’m right. But don’t expect me to keep doing this.”  
  
  
Minako fought the urge to roll her eyes, “Understood Pluto, would you like me to hold onto your phone?”  
  
  
Setsuna tossed it to her, “It doesn’t work at all at the Gates so go ahead. I’ll know if he calls anyway.”  
  
  
Minako caught the flip phone, “This thing is ancient, when are you going to upgrade?”  
  
  
“Soon, most likely when our Princess emerges,” Setsuna pulled out her Time Key, “See you in a minute or so.” And she was gone.  


* * *

  
Kizmel sighed; she didn’t like that Asuna was scared of herself. “Maybe I shouldn’t have told the Captain my suspicions,” she said to herself quietly. But she’d been so sure, and she’d been right. Asuna was who Serenity became. Still, she hated that she’d been the one that led to her friend becoming terrified of herself. Normally, people didn’t share who they were the reincarnations of, but doing that now wouldn’t help anyone.  
  
  
“I had best apologize,” the elf pushed away from the pillar she’d been leaning on in the palace. “If I don’t, she might not ever forgive me. And neither will the [Commander].”  
  
  
It was time to find her charges and get moving. But with the quest almost over, what would happen to her then? Would she and her sister die where they lay, or, would they be rescued somehow?  


* * *

  
It did not take Kirito and Asuna very long to find the [Castle of the Dark Elves]. Huge and grand with a slight Japanese flavor, the two young adventurers were led into the throne room. The room was richly decorated, with an understated opulence.  
  
  
Asuna was still looking around in awe when the [Dark Elf Queen] arrived. She turned back to look to the throne when she felt Kirito tug slightly on her sleeve.  
  
  
[Selene Queen of the Dark Elves] smiled to them both as she sat down, “You have come a long way Travelers.”  
  
  
“Yes Your Majesty,” Kirito agreed, bowing to her. _Her name changed. It must be Pluto’s doing._ He mused, “We have chosen to side with you, Your Majesty, in your fight against the Forest Elves. We have been aiding Knight Kizmel.”  
  
  
There could be only one reason to change this NPC’s name, to keep confusion down, because the girl who was once Serenity (as he was beginning to believe) was at his side.  
  
  
“For that, you have Our thanks,” Selene replied. “Your efforts have aided the efforts of Our kingdom in bringing a conclusion to this conflict. You did so, despite having no obligation towards us. Now, may We ask for your assistance in finally bringing an end to this conflict?”  
  
  
“Asuna and I would be honored to aid you in this final endeavor, Your Majesty,” Kirito replied, putting an effort into being as official sounding as he could.  
  
  
“Indeed, Your Majesty, the honor is ours,” Asuna said far more naturally.  


* * *

  
Kirito ran through the forests, the [Forest Elves] were close, he was glad that where the last battle would take place hadn’t been changed. He was headed to the [Dark Elf] camp where he would be expecting to help with strategy. He wasn’t sure how well he’d do.  
  
  
Asuna was already there, waiting. But they hadn't seen Kizmel at all, so where was she?  
  
  
“[Commander]?”  
  
  
Kirito slowed to a halt, turning to see Kizmel melt from the Shadows, “We’ve missed you.” He paused, “Where have you been?”  
  
  
Kizmel bit her lip, “I’m sorry, I’m the one who told Captain Heathcliff that Asuna might be…”  
  
  
“There’s nothing to apologize for Kizmel,” Kirito replied, “You could not have known that he’d ambush us like that. My brother has never been known for being subtle.”  
  
  
“But…”  
  
  
“If you must apologize to Asuna, then follow me, she’s all ready at my destination.” He began running again.  


* * *

  
Kirito took a deep breath, looking out over what would soon be a battle field. He wasn’t sure how many [Forest Elves] were there and he wasn’t sure how many [Dark Elves] were behind them, but he knew that they would be successful. Asuna, surprisingly, had been able to offer some valuable insight.  
  
  
They just had to remember that no plan survived contact with the enemy, even against computer generated mobs like the [Forest Elves]. “Remember Asuna, stay on your toes.”  
  
  
Asuna nodded, “Do you think Kizmel will be alright? She isn’t going to be with us this time.”  
  
  
“She’ll have to be,” Kirito gave her a lop sided smile, “We, unfortunately, have other, bigger things to worry about right now.”  
  
  
She gave him a dubious look before nodding, “I notice you took the Scarf off.”  
  
  
“I’m not about to risk it getting destroyed Asuna-hime,” he gave her a cocky smirk, “I seriously wish it wasn’t just a [Game Object].”  
  
  
Asuna sighed, blushing, “When does the fight begin?”  
  
  
“Soon.” his ears twitched at a sound, “And there it is…” He stood from where he was kneeling, drawing [Dark Sun] got everyone’s attention. He waited, watching as [Forest Elves] began to stream into the grassy plains. “This is it, the final battle,” his voice carried, captivating all their allies, “For Her Majesty, Queen Selene, CHARGE!”  
  
  
On either side of the two adventurers, the [Dark Elves] surged forward, clashing with the [Forest Elves] in the center of the field.  
  
  
Asuna couldn’t help turning to stare at her partner, “You… That was unlike you, Kirito-kun…”  
  
  
He gave her a nervous grin as he turned back to watch the battle, “We are looking for a specific [Forest Elf], He, or she is in charge of the other side, we need to kill them.”  
  
  
“You mean that will splinter the other side?” Asuna asked, turning to also searching for their target.  
  
  
“Yes, but we’ll need to join the battle to find them.” He said, “Let’s go, standing here isn’t going to do anything, other than put Kizmel at risk.” He dashed off into the fray, Asuna following a step behind.  
  
  
Kirito smacked into the line of [Forest Elves] hard, working together as they always did, he and Asuna soon broke through the line of elves. Scanning the battlefield, it was actually Asuna who found them.  
  
  
“Kirito-kun, they would be wearing something different, right?” she asked.  
  
  
“Yes,” Kirito replied, doing his best to deflect a lance.  
  
  
“I think I found them.”  
  
  
Kirito threw the lance upward and slashed the [Forest Elf] in half. “Where?”  
  
  
“There, that one with the really ornate clothing.”  
  
  
“The one with the fancy armor?” he asked, following her gaze, “Yes, that’s them.”  
  
  
Asuna sighed as another idea popped into her head, “I think I know what needs to be done, will you follow my lead?”  
  
  
“Sure, I’ll take over if you feel you can’t go through with it but otherwise…”  
  
  
“Thanks Kirito-kun,” she grinned wildly as she made a mad dash across the field, her ears telling her that her partner was just a step behind, as always.  
  
  
The [Forest Elf] was standing over Kizmel, “No one will help you, Dark Elf Bitch.”  
  
  
Kizmel growled, ‘Like I would let you win!” She brought up her scimitar, blocking a downward cut as best she could.  
  
  
“Not my friend you aren’t!” Asuna roared, taking the [Forest Elf] by surprise. He took his attention off of Kizmel to deflect Asuna’s thrust, a creepy smirk on his face.  
  
  
“I don’t think so, little Adventurer,” he snarled.  
  
  
“She’s not the only one you have to contend with!” Kirito barreled into the elf from behind, “Asuna, Switch!”  
  
  
Asuna grinned as she stepped forward, thrusting into the elf’s chest as Kirito knocked the huge ornate sword aside. The next moment she was back out of range as Kirito cut off both of the elf’s hands at the wrist.  
  
  
Kirito made to step back but Asuna stopped him, “Kirito-kun, finish him.”  
  
  
“As you wish, Hime,” he replied, stepping back into range, he beheaded the elf, ending the battle.  


* * *

  
Kirito sighed deeply once they’d returned to their tent at the army’s camp, “I’m tired.” he flopped down onto the cot and closed his eyes to take a nap. Doing his level best to ignore his partner’s giggling. He felt the cot move as she dropped down next to him and snuggled into his side. He went bright red, “What are you doing Asuna?”  
  
  
“I can’t want a nap too?” she asked innocently.  
  
  
He groaned, hiding his face in her hair, “If you want.” he dropped off almost instantly.  
  
  
As Asuna dropped off to sleep, Kizmel stood by and watched them with a soft smile. _Princess, [Commander], I wish you the best in this_ , she thought. Her part in this quest was done, and she hoped that the Captain allowed her to leave a farewell missive for the version of her that would remain here to give them.  
  
  
She would rather do so in person, but they _would_ meet again. That she knew.  


* * *

  
Setsuna’s phone rang and Minako picked it up, “Moshi, moshi, you’ve reached Setsuna Meioh’s cell phone, she’s not available at the moment, This is Aino Minako speaking, how can I help you?”  
  
  
“Venus.”  
  
  
Minako’s eyes widened, “Captain Heathcliff?”  
  
  
“That I am,” came the reply.  
  
  
“I take it that the quest is over?” she asked urgently.  
  
  
“It is, good luck with getting them down.” he hung up.  
  
  
Minako put the phone down, “Girls, it’s time to go,” she said.  
  
  
“About time,” Makoto said.  
  
  
Rei pulled her pen from behind her ear, “What are we waiting for then?”  
  
  
“Pluto with a map, I think,” Ami turned her computer off.  
  
  
Pluto arrived, “I know exactly where we are going. Word of warning girls, the place is a mess. So we should do our best to avoid…”  
  
  
Minako nodded, “I think we get it.”  
  
  
Pluto sighed, “Where’s Mamoru?”  
  
  
“He’s on his way.” Ami replied, “He’ll be here in a moment.”  
  
  
Pluto nodded and looked toward the steps to the shrine. “He’s already here,” she said as Mamoru trotted through the Torii Gates.  
  
  
“Sorry for being late,” he said as he came to a stop. “Traffic was worse than usual.”  
  
  
“It’s no problem, Mamoru,” Minako said. “We just got the word that it’s time only a few minutes ago.” She turned to Setsuna. “Before we transform, are you willing to guide the teleport?”  
  
  
Setsuna nodded. “Of course,” she said. “I can’t get you to the exact spot, it’s shielded against teleportation, but I can guide you there.”  
  
  
“What about atmosphere?” Ami asked. “If we’re going to the moon, it might be too much to expect that there’s still atmosphere there.”  
  
  
Setsuna nodded. “I have that covered,” she said. “My predecessor liked to prepare for contingencies, and she made sure that there were tools for this kind of occasion. She couldn’t tell the specifics of what was coming, but she did what she could to prepare for everything she could think of.” She grimaced. “I would not be surprised if she even saw something like this as a possibility.”  
  
  
“So atmosphere will be handled then?” Minako asked.  
  
  
“Once we arrive,” Setsuna said.  
  
  
“That works,” Makoto said. “We can set everything up when we get there and do the rescue.”  
  
  
“Indeed,” Setsuna agreed. Maybe she should take a leaf out of her Past Life’s book and start doing the same. That did not mean that she wanted to make the same mistakes though.  
  
  
Mamoru left the room, to let them transform in peace, and came back as Tuxedo Mask when they were done. “We should get going.”  


* * *

  
Pluto put them down in the least gory place, as close to the Pods as she could get.  
  
  
Mercury pulled her computer out and ran a scan. “We have atmosphere,” she said. “It’s breathable, if a little stale.” She shook her head in wonder. “How?”  
  
  
“Good magitech, and a lot of redundancies,” Pluto said, teleporting something in. “Still, just in case. It’s been ten thousand years.”  
  
  
“And it’s better than vacuum,” Mars snarked. “I’d rather have stale air than no air.”  
  
  
Jupiter snorted in amused agreement.  
  
  
“Who should we wake first, or does it matter?” Minako asked.  
  
  
“Kizmel and then Tilnel would be best. But it really wouldn’t matter one way or the other.” Pluto replied, “This way.”  
  
  
There was the occasional body, but thankfully not anyone they’d known in that other life. But they were afraid that it wouldn’t stay that way. Suddenly, Pluto stopped, “We need to go right, but don’t look ahead, whatever you do…”  
  
  
Thankfully, this route had a lot of dust (likely the remains of Youma long dead) but not much else. And they found the room with no more trouble.  
  
  
Unlike most of the once grand palace, this room was almost pristine. Wasting as little time as she could Pluto checked both pods, “It looks like they might work for one more week, but let’s not risk it.” she pulled the glove off and, hoping for the best (and that her palm print hadn’t changed), placed her hand on the palm reader.  
  
  
“WELCOME SAILOR PLUTO. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO DO?” the computer asked, coming to life.  
  
  
She let out a breath she hadn’t even known she was holding. “I really hope I have the wording right…” Pluto took a deep breath. “Computer, deactivate the pod One-Zero-Zero-Zero-One and One-Zero-Zero-Zero-Five. Please wake Subjects: Nightwalkers Kizmel and Tilnel. In that order.”  
  
  
“AS YOU WISH, SAILOR PLUTO.” Fog and dust began to rise from the pod on the left. Then the lid opened and the elf began to cough.  
  
  
“Good morning Kizmel,” Venus helped her out of the pod; “Sorry it took so long to retrieve you.”  
  
  
Kizmel rubbed at her eyes, “I can’t really see anything, just shadows.”  
  
  
“Do you recognize our voices at least?” Jupiter asked gently.  
  
  
“I think so?” Kizmel rubbed at her eyes. They were speaking differently, but thanks to spending the last several weeks immersed in Sword Art Online she could understand them and even make herself understood. “How’s my sister?”  
  
  
There was a loud screech as the second pod opened and Tilnel took a breath of stale air, almost choking on it. “Sister, where are you? I can’t see.”  
  
  
“That would be the Hibernation Sickness, Tilnel,” Pluto said quietly. “You are safe, the attack is long over. We are going to take you down to Earth as soon as you and your sister can see, all right?”  
  
  
“Pluto?” Tilnel asked hopefully. “Is that you?”  
  
  
“Yes it’s me,” the Senshi of Time and Space soothed the younger Elf. She gently took the elf’s hand and helped her out of the pod.  
  
  
It took fifteen minutes for the elves’ sight to return, at which point they started to move away from the room. “Wait,” Kizmel stopped, “There’s something I need to see before we leave.”  
  
  
She needed to see her charge, or, whatever might be left of her.  
  
  
Pluto shook her head, “You really don’t Kizmel, you really shouldn’t.”  
  
  
“No, I have to see her with my own eyes,” Kizmel shook her head, “Besides; Captain Heathcliff already told me what I will find. I know it won’t be pretty.”  
  
  
“Knowing and seeing are two very different things you know,” Pluto reminded her.  
  
  
“That is irrelevant,” Kizmel nearly snapped. “I was a soldier before I was her bodyguard.”  
  
  
Pluto sighed, “All right then, Tux, you can guide her, right?” She looked to the only man in the group.  
  
  
Mask nodded, “We’ll be back soon.”  


* * *

  
Kizmel gazed down at the body and shook her head, “Why?” she breathed, “Suicide, I knew it would be that, but why?” What could have driven her friend to this extreme? She turned to look at the man beside her, who was trying not to look at anything.  
  
  
“I couldn’t tell you,” he said, shaking his head. “He died before she did.”  
  
  
“Why are you speaking in such a way?” Kizmel turned her eyes from the girl she’d spent so much time with, to the young man who could be the twin of Endymion.  
  
  
He sighed, “We are not these corpses Kizmel, so we don’t say I or we when we speak of them.” he scratched the back of his head. “All of us at one point or another have almost lost ourselves to those memories. So, to keep our two lives separate…”  
  
  
“It’s easier to speak of them as different people, because they are.” Kizmel finished for him, “I understand.”  
  
  
“Let’s get going, we don’t know how much air we have left,” he turned away from the frozen bodies on the ground, “We left Uranus and Neptune to keep an eye out.”  
  
  
“By the Cauldron of Stars, have things gotten so bad that they are having to fight threats _within_ the system?” Kizmel asked.  
  
  
“Unfortunately, yes,” he groaned, “But we know that they aren’t suited to the fight we are in, so Pluto sends them out to destroy the Dark Kingdom’s Energy Stores and Warehouses. It’s where they do the most good.” He looked her in the eye, “There are only seven of us, with the Princess out of our reach for the moment and Saturn safely asleep. We really had no other choice.”  
  
  
Kizmel looked thoughtful, “The Captain didn’t really tell me anything of what was going on.” She murmured. “But perhaps that is for the best, so that I may give a fresh perspective.”  
  
  
Tuxedo Mask huffed, leading her out of the room.  
  
  
Kizmel took one last long look at the girl who had once been her friend and princess before following the man from the room. There would be a time to put them all to rest later.  


* * *

  
Pluto looked to Mars, “Would you be willing to house them for a while? The shrine will probably be one of the best places to acclimate them to the Earth’s gravity, and since it’s also a quiet place, we can start easing them into our new culture. A glamour on their ears and some hair dye and they will look perfectly normal.”  
  
  
“Perhaps,” Mars agreed, “But I suppose it depends on my grandfather.”  
  
  
“He might be a bit of a pervert, but he knows not to do anything other than look,” Pluto reminded her.  
  
  
“Then, as long as he doesn’t try to force them to help around the shrine before they are ready I have no problem housing them, at least to start with.” Mars agreed.  
  
  
Pluto sighed in relief, “That’s good.” She saw Kizmel and Tuxedo Mask. “Good, you’re back.” She said. “Kizmel, Tilnel, if you haven’t noticed, the gravity here is the moon’s standard, rather than the higher gravity that the palace should have. If you don’t mind, I would like for Mercury to scan you both to ensure that your time in stasis here hasn’t resulted in the usual effects of extended time in a low gravity environment.”  
  
  
“That would be wise, Sailor Pluto,” Tilnel said.  
  
  
Mercury opened her minicomputer and started the scan. A few moments later she stopped scanning and then turned to Pluto. “There is some muscle and bone loss, but it is far lower than it otherwise could have been.” She said. “It is safe to bring them to Earth, though I would recommend that they take it carefully until they adjust to the higher gravity.”  
  
  
Pluto nodded, “How much?” _Please let it be on a level similar to the level that the Astronauts experience..._  
  
  
“I don’t have their biometric data from before they went into stasis,” Mercury said.  
  
  
“...I think I might be able to get away with telling you what that was, since we’ll need to start medical files on them anyway... I’ll be right back.” Pluto teleported away.  
  
  
Kizmel chuckled, “Pluto is very different than I remember her being…”  
  
  
Tilnel nodded, just as amused as her older sister was.  
  
  
Pluto reappeared a moment later with two slim file folders, “These are the basics for the both of them here. I included what their allergies are, though I highly doubt some of the plants still exist, on Earth anyway.”  
  
  
“...Is it in a language I can read Pluto?” Mercury asked.  
  
  
“Don’t worry about that, Mercury,” Pluto said with a chuckle. “I had them translated, though I do recommend that you learn how to read it when the time becomes available.”  
  
  
“Quick translation,” Jupiter muttered.  
  
  
“...Please tell me it’s not as bad as Google Translate sometimes is.” Mercury said.  
  
  
“No, it isn’t,” Pluto assured her and then turned to the two elves. “We may be able to bring both of them at once, but I would recommend that we take two trips for their safety.”  
  
  
Mercury put her computer away. “That’s a good idea, we don’t want to hurt them or ourselves in the process of trying to get home.”  
  
  
“Well then, which of you two will be going with us to Earth first then?” Venus asked, turning to them.  
  
  
The two elves had a rapid fire conversation in Lunarian for about a minute before Kizmel stepped forward, “I will.”  
  
  
“I will remain here to keep her company,” Tuxedo Mask said.  
  
  
“Same here,” Jupiter said.  


* * *

  
Kizmel almost fell to the ground as soon as the teleport finished and the Earth’s gravity pulled at her. The effect was not unexpected, as the transition was rapid, and she had braced herself for it as best she could. Her entire body felt far heavier her entire skeleton felt as if it was about to shatter under the pressure, and her sense of balance was very off.  
  
  
She hated rapid transitions between differing gravities!  
  
  
“Mercury, scan her.” Venus ordered.  
  
  
“Her body’s holding up, but it’s going to be difficult for her for a bit,” Mercury said. “If we had something like acceleration couches, I would recommend that she and Tilnel spend their first several hours on Earth reclining in them.  
  
  
“I’m sure Captain Heathcliff has a few we can use, er, that is, I’m sure he has some prototypes.” Pluto mused, for once not absolutely sure. “He was planning on all Medicuboids being attached to one, or something like it. That would allow Kizmel to spend more time with our Princess in SAO.”  
  
  
“So she _is_ in SAO.” Venus said, nodding. “I suspected that it was possible. Do you know how she is…?”  
  
  
“She is actively involved in freeing all the ones trapped in there,” Kizmel said. “Among other things as well.”  
  
  
“While you set things up with Captain Heathcliff, I’ll go ask Grandpa to set up some rooms for them to use.” Mars replied. “He might be a bit startled when he sees two elves, but that’s about it.”  
  
  
“He does how about us,” Pluto pointed out, “Or, at the very least he knows about you, Mars. Have you thought about coming clean?”  
  
  
Mars bit her lip, “Quite a few times actually, but it never felt like the right… time to do it.” The Miko sighed, she hated those time puns. “I guess I just didn’t want to worry him. But if he already knows and hasn’t said anything… he’s probably waiting for me to say something.”  
  
  
“Well, now would probably be best,” Pluto told her, “I’ll be right back, I have to drop Kizmel off with the Captain and then we need to bring Tilnel down here. As well as Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Jupiter.”  
  
  
Mars left the room after Pluto teleported herself and Kizmel away.  


* * *

  
“Just a warning,” Pluto whispered before they stepped into the hospital, “Captain Heathcliff looks quite different.”  
  
  
Kizmel nodded silently as she did her best to keep up. It helped that Pluto was supporting her discretely. “If the Princess looks differently in this era, then it would only make sense that he does,” she said. She glanced into a mirror and noted the illusion that hid the shape of her ears, as well as making changes to her features so she can blend in.  
  
  
Pluto got them passes and ushered Kizmel into the elevator. One short walk later and they were in the waiting area where Kayaba had told them he’d be waiting.  
  
  
He wasn’t alone.  
  
  
Pluto helped Kizmel sit down and watched as Heathcliff argued with an older woman quietly.  
  
  
“Aki, I don’t _care_ how dangerous it is,” she said in a louder voice. “I want to see for myself that he is fine in there.”  
  
  
“Aunt Midori, he is doing fine in there,” Kayaba said. “Last I heard, he had completed a major quest and is now resting.”  
  
  
“That is irrelevant.” Midori snapped. “Until I see that he’s fine with my own eyes I won’t…” she sighed. “I haven’t been sleeping I’ve been so worried Aki!”  
  
  
Pluto cleared her throat, getting their attention. “I apologize for this intrusion,” she said.  
  
  
“Sailor Pluto?” Midori asked in shock. “What are you doing here?”  
  
  
Pluto grinned, “I had an appointment with him, I worked with him on SAO actually, and I have a request on behalf of a mutual friend. She needs to use one of the Medicuboids, as does her sister for a few hours.”  
  
  
Kayaba looked at Kizmel and then back to Midori. “Aunt Midori, this young lady saw Kazuto but a few hours ago inside SAO,” he said, indicating Kizmel. “How she ended up in there is something I cannot divulge, but she spent the last several weeks accompanying him.” Neither was it something he could explain, even if he _could_ have said anything. Because he just didn’t know.  
  
  
Kizmel knew immediately who he was talking about. “Commander Kirito is just fine, he was taking a nap with his partner Asuna last I saw him,” Kizmel reported, “That last chapter of the Quest took a lot out of both of them.”  
  
  
“So he’s partnered with a young lady?” Midori asked, blinking in surprise.  
  
  
“One that he’s smitten with, by all indications” Kayaba said with a smirk.  
  
  
Kizmel nodded. “I am willing to bet that they end up married before the s-game is finished.” She had barely avoided calling it a simulation, remembering only at the last moment that it had been marketed as a game, of all things.  
  
  
“I have my col on the wedding taking place on the twenty-second floor,” Kayaba looked thoughtful, “I’ll record it to show you, Aunt Midori.”  
  
  
“...Married?” Midori repeated, completely floored by the revelation. “He’s only fourteen!”  
  
  
“And her, fifteen,” Kayaba said. “It’s not something that will be legally recognized out here, of course. But everyone who knows them and has seen them together in there has been betting on their being married by the time SAO ends.”  
  
  
“Kazuto isn’t like that though!” Midori protested. “He isn’t exactly a social butterfly, you know. He has a lot of trouble even articulating what he wants to say, he’s a very shy young man.”  
  
  
“He is still shy from what I’ve seen, but what is going on inside the game is breaking him out of that shell, ma’am,” Kizmel said. “He has taken, almost by accident, a position that is setting him to becoming a leader, and he is rising to the occasion. His partner, Asuna, is helping him remain grounded, but there are those in there who…” She paused.  
  
  
“Those in there who, what?” Midori asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.  
  
  
“Commander Kirito has made it clear that certain behaviors will not be tolerated,” Kizmel said diplomatically.  
  
  
Midori’s eyes narrowed farther. “I know gaming culture well enough to understand what behaviors you are referring to,” she said. “There is a subset of those who play such games who like to play the villain, and how would he keep them from doing so anyway?”  
  
  
“If necessary, at sword point,” Kizmel said. “The person who tried that with him, lost an arm, quite literally. I saw Commander Kirito slice… Was his name Morte?” She nodded to herself, “I saw him slice Morte’s arm off. I found that to be quite intimidating actually...”  
  
  
“I find that hard to believe,” Midori said. “My son would not do something like that, he _wouldn’t_.”  
  
  
Kayaba pulled out his phone and opened a video file. “I have proof of what she saw,” He held his phone out for her to take; “I suggest you watch this clip.” He’d been quite proud of his brother in this case.  
  
  
Midori hesitantly took Kayaba’s phone and pressed [Play]. The video was over three minutes long, as it contained the entire encounter between Kirito and Morte on the third floor. The time stamp claimed the footage six weeks old.  
  
  
“Please watch the whole video, Aunt Midori,” Kayaba requested.  
  
  
Midori’s eyes widened as the video played. At one point she had to pause it, “There are people trying to kill my son in there?”  
  
  
“He’s fine Aunty, finish the video,” Kayaba repeated.  
  
  
She closed her mouth with a sharp click of teeth and pressed [Play] again. The phone fell from her slack hands when it was finished. She stared at the ground in shock, her mouth moving, but no words coming out.  
  
  
Kayaba snatched his phone from the air before it could hit the ground. The only reason he had kept a phone was that no one but himself, and now Kizmel (and Tilnel, wherever she was) could use the Communications Spell. Really, the smartphones were too… _delicate_ for his liking. They came apart much too easily.  
  
  
Now he was just waiting for the other shoe to drop, when his Aunt found the words she was looking for. Neither his aunt, nor his mother had been known to mince their words after all. He just knew it wouldn’t be pretty.  
  
  
“Pluto, Kizmel can use the Medicuboid I’ve been using,” Kayaba turned to her, “I think you know where my room is?”  
  
  
She nodded, “Come on Kizmel, let’s get you to that bed.”  
  
  
Kizmel let Pluto help her up, “I’ll see you later, Captain.”  
  
  
That snapped Midori out of her stupor, “Captain? Aki…” She gave him a glare, “You can start telling me what is going on _now_!”


	18. A Moment of Peace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which everyone gets a breather and Kirito and Asuna decide to Troll the rest of the Player base.

  
Suguha felt rather nervous as she walked into the high class hospital where she was meeting her friend Yuuki Kouichirou. The young Kirigaya felt very out of place as she walked up to the front desk, “I’m here to visit Asuna, her brother is expecting me.”  
  
  
  
She was handed a pass, “Floor ten, last room on the left,” the nurse at the desk instructed.  
  
  
  
“Thank you ma’am,” Suguha hurried to the closest elevators and hit the up button. She had to wait for several minutes as almost every single one was full when it opened. She was actually contemplating taking the stairs when she finally got one where she fit in the packed box, she couldn’t wait to get off. She was the first to get off on the right floor and barely kept herself from running to the right door.  
  
  
  
“You’re a bit late,” Kou noted as he fiddled with the laptop he was sitting in front of.  
  
  
  
“All the elevators were packed like sardine cans,” she explained by way of complaining, walking to the bedside. “This is your sister? She’s quite pretty.”  
  
  
  
“Pretty?” Kou gave his sleeping sister a look, “My sister isn’t pretty, she’s adorable.” he turned the chair to look at his much younger friend, “In the same way that you are.”  
  
  
  
Suguha found herself blushing, “W-well,” she found herself blustering, “What did you want to show me anyway?” Only her older brother Kazuto had ever called her adorable before.  
  
  
  
“Come here then,” Kou gestured, not minding a bit when she leaned over his shoulder, “You’ll like this…” he grinned widely as he opened the Stream, going to the Live Feed.  
  
  
  
Suguha’s eyes widened when she saw her brother, her _shy and socially awkward_ older brother, curled up with a _girl_ napping on a cot in a tent that was only big enough for one person. “That’s… your sister… right?” she asked, turning to look at him.  
  
  
  
“Yep, aren’t they cute?” Kou gave her a teasing grin.  
  
  
  
“...This is _so out of character_ for my brother…” she mumbled, unable to believe her eyes.  
  
  
  
“I’m only familiar with how he was in the [Beta], I’m afraid,” Kou said. “He was different there, but that is part of the fun, isn’t there?”  
  
  
  
Suguha nodded. “I guess,” she said uncertainly. “But he looks like he otherwise would. Not quite, you can tell that the body is not real, but it’s close enough.” She didn’t really understand it since she had yet to unpack her prototype AmuSphere. Not to mention she hadn’t even started on the research she needed to do for Alfheim Online...  
  
  
  
Kou nodded. “Right,” he said.  
  
  
  
“You’ve saved videos?” she asked, seeing the list of mp4 files to the side.  
  
  
  
“I did, the Boss battles are quite epic.” Kou grinned, “And since it doesn’t look like they will be going anywhere for the moment, I’ll let you pick one. I set it up to save the fights the Avatar, in this case my sister, is in, or near. That means that I can watch all the boss battles so far since she was in all of them.”  
  
  
  
Suguha blinked, “How did you do that?”  
  
  
  
“I’ll tell you later, what do you want to see first?”  
  
  
  
“How about this one?” Suguha asked, pointing to a minute and a half long video. “It’s a shorter video and unfortunately I didn’t bring any popcorn or I’d pick something longer.”  
  
  
  
“I’m sure we could find popcorn somewhere,” Kou shrugged, it was a video he hadn’t watched yet, because it was so short.  
  
  
  


* * *

 

Kirito opened an eye several hours later, in time for dinner. Eating and sleeping were simple pleasures, but they were ones which anyone could easily obtain in SAO. He would take those simple pleasures, as a full stomach and being well rested made for easy contentment.

 

 

Carefully disentangling himself from his partner he stretched languidly. The elves would be leaving the area soon, and he and Asuna had to go with them. Or they’d get lost. “Come on Asuna, time to get up, it’s dinner time.”

 

 

The arm she had around his middle tightened, “No. I’m sleeping,” she grumbled, half way between wakefulness and sleep.

 

 

Kirito chuckled, “Come on, Asuna-hime, get up.” He poked her cheek playfully.

 

 

Reluctantly, her arm retracted and she sat up, also stretching, opening her menu she looked at him over it, “You said something about dinner?” she asked pulling out a now familiar basket.

 

 

He perked up at the sight of it. “Please tell me that’s our dinner.”

 

 

“Why would it be anything else?” she snarked, handing him a sandwich.

 

 

“Thank you very much,” Kirito took a bite.

 

 

* * *

 

“Now I wish I’d chosen a longer video…” Suguha mumbled in shock, when had her brother gotten so…

 

 

“He didn’t like that kind of behavior in the [Beta], though he tolerated it, barely.” Kou said. “It was more of an annoyance then. But with them trapped in game and believing that they will die for real if they die there, I can see how he would want to put a stop to that kind of behavior early.” There was a note of grim approval in his voice as he spoke. “It won’t stop all of them, but it should warn off a few.”

 

 

“Then my brother’s not a ‘usual’ gamer, is he?” she asked turning to the young man in the chair, “Gamers do everything right?” She was still having trouble believing what she was told about what happened in normal games. Why would anyone want to play the villain? Why would anyone play the villain in a game where you really died if you were killed?

 

 

“There are probably more than a few who still don’t believe the reality of their situation,” Kou said. “Can’t blame them, really. Who would _want_ to believe something like that, and people are good at rationalizing things when they can.”

 

 

Suguha nodded, “I guess? But,” she struggled for a moment, “They have no evidence one way or the other right? So, wouldn’t it be safer to take what Kayaba said that first day to heart? Just to be on the safe side?”

 

 

“You’d think so,” Kou mused in complete agreement, “Wouldn’t you? I would have liked to believe that they’d have stopped at being thieves. But that’s just us being optimistic and not realistic.”

 

 

“I wouldn’t want to be anyone that crosses my brother,” Suguha grimaced, “I’m lucky he’s my brother, to think he’d go this far for a lot of people he doesn’t or barely knows…”

 

 

Kou nodded and checked the feed. “Oh, it looks like they’re awake now,” he said.

 

 

“Are they… eating dinner together as if it’s a picnic?” Suguha blinked in surprise when her brother complemented Asuna on her cooking.

 

 

* * *

 

“I still don’t like moving through the fields at night,” Asuna grumbled, “I’d rather be sleeping!”

 

 

Kirito chuckled. “I understand, but something tells me we had better get used to it,” he said. “Not everything we will have to do will happen at times we want them to happen.”

 

 

“So Nighttime quests are a thing then?” She groaned.

 

 

Kirito nodded. “Most are optional for progressing, but can have good rewards.” He looked thoughtful for a moment, “And If I remember right, there was one that needed to be completed to progress on Floor Ten but we couldn’t figure it out before the beta ended…”

 

 

“I’d still rather be sleeping!” she whined.

 

 

Kirito gave her a playful smirk, “Don’t pout.”

 

 

She stuck her tongue out at him in retaliation.

 

 

“You and your promises… If you want to keep that tongue of yours don’t stick it out at me,” he threatened playfully.

 

 

Asuna blushed hotly, “You still haven’t explained anything!” She was sure that he was teasing her! “Quit being such a tease!”

 

 

“Oh?” Kirito’s eyes narrowed playfully, “And you aren’t?”

 

 

“Kirito-kun!” Asuna protested.

 

 

He stopped suddenly and turned to her fully. “You mean to tell me that you’ve had no idea?” He asked. “You are such a tease! And you didn’t even… pffft!” He started laughing.

 

 

Asuna growled in frustration.

 

 

Tears were beading at the corners of his eyes, “Ow… ow…” he had to hold his sides in pain, “How can you seriously be this innocent?” He shook his head as he slowly regained control.

 

 

She took a step forward and smacked him, “How am I supposed to understand if you don’t help me to do so?”

 

 

Kirito rubbed his cheek, “Ok, I might have deserved that…” he admitted. “Alright, let’s start with the first thing you did, when you licked, yes, _licked_ my finger.”

 

 

He couldn’t believe he had to explain this to someone who was older than he was! “...Please tell me that you’ve had _that_ talk with your parents?” That would make this _so much easier_...

 

 

“Tha…” she went bright red when she realized exactly what he was asking about. “Yes!” she squeaked.

 

 

Kirito sighed in relief. “Okay,” he said, quite relieved that he didn’t have to explain everything. “So you at least know some things, but some of the things you’ve done can be… taken as flirting or teasing in certain ways.” And damn it if it wasn’t hot!

 

 

“You… I… Really?” She’d been flirting with her partner the whole time?

 

 

He nodded, “I’m sorry, I thought you knew what you were doing so I responded in kind.” He was blushing too now. If it came this naturally then what did everyone else see? “And I suppose everything just… ran away from us before we even realized what was going on…”

 

 

Really, was it any wonder Argo had that pool going on? She’d thought she’d kept it a secret but he had ways of finding these things out. And he was pretty sure he knew that he liked her as more than a friend now.

 

 

“And… what might others take our games of Chase as?” Asuna asked. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know, but she couldn’t stop herself from asking.

 

 

Kirito’s face turned red. “Umm, you know… they might be thinking that... we…” he paused, face going pale and then reddening even more. “When did our lives start looking like something out of an H-game?” Oh Gods, this was _so embarrassing_...

 

 

Asuna blushed. This might be her first time ever playing a game, but that didn’t mean that she hadn’t caught her brother playing such, “Um… those are, uh…” Oh, she couldn’t say it.

 

 

He swallowed, “Yeah, _those_.”

 

 

“...What have we done?” she wondered numbly.

 

 

Kirito got an interesting look on his face, “Asuna?”

 

 

She blinked, coming out of shock slightly, “What?”

 

 

“...What if we were to… I don’t know,” he gave her a speculative look, “What if we just went with it? What if we played it up to the ridiculous extreme?”

 

 

Asuna considered that and then looked at Kirito. “It would be funny,” she admitted. “But you do know that doing that might blow up in our faces, right?”

 

 

He nodded, “Of course we’d have to give this some serious thought before ever doing anything, but it’s better to ask the question, right?” Kirito started after the elves again, “And if we do anything, it’s going to be something we’ve decided to do together, as a team, the way we’ve always done it.”

 

 

“I suppose,” she agreed. “How about we decide on whatever it is that we are going to do back at the Elven Castle? It will give us a few hours to think it over.”

 

 

He was only fourteen, why was he even contemplating this kind of thing? It wasn’t like anyone on the Outside was watching them. Both he and Asuna now knew that everything was completely innocent and there wasn’t any hidden meaning in their actions. Even the misunderstandings had been. And they didn’t have anything to prove.

 

 

They were good friends. And at the moment, that was all they were. Why did it matter that she was a girl and he was a boy? There had been other pairs of friends with the same kind of easy, close friendship that they shared.

 

 

Asuna lengthened her strides and slipped her hand into his the way she usually did and he gave her an easy smile as he intertwined their fingers. Who cared what everyone else thought? Who cared what everyone else _thought_ they saw?

 

 

* * *

 

“So,” Kirito pulled Asuna down to sit next to him on a bench in the deserted Mess Hall, “We’re here, which means we need to decide what we want to do. Any ideas come to you while we were walking?” he asked.

 

 

Asuna shook her head. She hadn’t been able to think up anything. Not for the lack of trying.

 

 

“That’s a shame, I couldn’t think of anything either.” Kirito bit his lip, sighing. “I do know that we can’t keep going as we have though. I suppose we _could_ ignore it and keep going as we have, but I’m sure, _somehow_ , that doing so would cause problems for us.”

 

 

“Well, there’s no flash of insight from… _her_ …” Asuna grimaced, she hated not knowing what to do.

 

 

“I don’t know if I should envy you or not,” Kirito leaned forward, putting his chin in one hand. He was only half joking.

 

 

“ _Don’t_.” Asuna said firmly. “I may gain insight on some things, but having _her_ in the back of my head is making me question who I am.” She slouched against him, “It’s not fun.”

 

 

“I told you,” Kirito gave her a one armed hug, “You are Asuna, that is never going to change.”

 

 

“I know that, but having bits of her memories and experiences just coming up like that…” Asuna said. “It makes me question where she ends and I begin.”

 

 

“And I bet my brother felt the same way, especially when he first started remembering.” Kirito pointed out, “But you have something he probably didn’t. You have the support of someone on the outside. No matter what you get from her, you’ll always be the same Asuna that has become the best friend I could ever hope to find.”

 

 

Asuna didn’t know what to say to that. Having friends was something she didn’t have much experience with. She had acquaintances, especially among her classmates and fellow students at her school, but friends?

 

 

She wasn’t her brother, who was sociable by nature, which would serve him well as he rose up the ranks of RECT. But her mother had ensured that she was focused on studies, and she wondered if it was to control her life by taking any outside social networks out of the equation.

 

 

Here… her mother wasn’t here. She could do her own networking. She even had a friend that, that… The best friend she could ever imagine having. She, she could do this! For maybe the first time she was in control of her life. She could live, in this game, the way she wanted too.

 

 

She thought back to what Kirito had said about taking it to the extreme. “Hypothetically, if we were to play along… how should we do it?” The more she thought about it, the less she cared that it could blow up in their faces. Her partner was cute; he was her first, _best_ friend. And if this game blew up in their faces the way this kind of thing usually did, well… they were already sleeping in the same bed.

 

 

Kirito looked thoughtful for a moment before shrugging. “We play it for all it’s worth, I guess,” he said. “How far we push things will have to be planned out, but if they’re already expecting it…”

 

 

Asuna nodded and an idea came to her. “I just had an idea,” she said. “Can’t really tell if it’s from _her_ or not, but…” She smirked.

 

 

Kirito leaned closer, “Go on.” He grinned, “You know I’m always up for your kind of crazy…”

 

 

“Well…” They could work this!

 

 

* * *

 

Kayaba sat back in his chair as he double checked the clean up he’d been doing on Yui and Strea. They hadn’t been AIs in the beginning, and now they were somehow… more.

 

 

“Cardinal, how’s debugging the Unique Skills going?”

 

 

“I’m almost done with [Holy Sword] Master, next I will be moving onto [Duel Blades].” the AI paused, “What kind of order would you like for me to put the rest in?”

 

 

“Just focus on [Holy Sword] and [Duel Blades] for now, we can decide what to do about the others when [Duel Blades] is closer to being finished.” he replied. They could worry about more trivial things later.

 

 

And he had this feeling that he might have jinxed the matter. He wasn’t sure why, because all the Skills needed to be debugged. And he hadn’t said any of them would not be.

 

 

* * *

 

Beryl sat between Klein and Dynamm at the bar on the eighth floor, “Ok, I need an opinion on something!” she put her drink down, “Klein, Captain Heathcliff wants me to help him revive the Royal Guard. What do you suggest I do?”

 

 

Klein turned to give her a questioning look, “Why would he do that?”

 

 

“I have no idea,” she shrugged, “But he did and I have no idea what to do.”

 

 

“Well, why are you asking me? We’re both from Earth, in both lives.” Klein reminded her. “And he was forced into siding with you. Not a bad thing, when you look at it in some ways, he wasn’t given much choice, but… at the same time, he could have done better in trying to fight the possession off.”

 

 

Beryl nodded. “It was the same with… _her_ ,” she agreed. “But I’ve already mentioned how she was and how it left her open to it.”

 

 

“Boss,” Dynamm began. “Does it really matter all that much? Neither of you are them.”

 

 

“True, and you haven’t said anything about your past life,” Klein said.

 

 

Dynamm shrugged. “No point to it,” he said. “That was then, this is now. Angsting over it like some whiny emo won’t accomplish anything.”

 

 

Beryl started giggling, “You’re right, maybe I’m making too much of this.” her hand trembled as she opened her menu, “And just because it’s going to piss that corpse off, I think I’ll do it.”

 

 

Klein chuckled, “That’s the spirit! We’ll help too, won’t we, Dynamm?”

 

 

“Of course, Boss,” the man easily agreed with a slight smile.

 

 

* * *

 

Beryl’s message caught Heathcliff by surprise. He’d expected her to take a bit more time to decide. He dismissed the icon, he could reply later. Right now he wanted to find his brother and spend some time with him. He knew Asuna would also be there, and he didn’t mind. That would let him get to know his Princess. He’d just have to be careful about not bringing that up.

 

 

He was just leaving the Dark Elves’ Castle when he spied the pair discussing something.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito kept an eye out, the Quest might be over, but that didn’t mean that they could relax. They still needed to clear the floor. “Hime, we should hurry to town, there’s really no reason for us to be out here. Unless you want to go Dragon Hunting?”

 

 

Asuna giggled, “Dragon Hunting sounds good, Kirito-kun…” she purred. “Let’s go find some. Or… we could try the tried and tested way…”

 

 

“And that is?” Kirito asked with a smirk.

 

 

She walked up to him with a smirk of her own and pecked his cheek, “You’re it.” Then she was gone.

 

 

It took a moment to get his blush under control, but then he was dashing after her, “Get back here, you tease!” Some days, he hated being slower than her, “You had better keep that promise you just made!”

 

 

“If you catch me I just might,” she sang, speeding up. “You are strong, you should be able to… outlast me…”

 

 

Kirito pushed himself even harder, “I’ll make you eat those words!”

 

 

“Are you sure you can deliver on that promise?” she tossed him a smirk over her shoulder.

 

 

They didn’t even notice that they’d run past Heathcliff, who was staring at them with a mix of bemusement and shock.

 

 

“Yeah I can,” Kirito snarked back, “ _In bed_!”

 

 

“I wouldn’t be too sure of that, _Loverboy_ ,” Asuna turned in another direction.

 

 

Heathcliff blinked, watching them in shock. This was _not_ how he’d expected his brother to act. ... _Maybe I should just leave them alone?_ He wondered. And perhaps he should check to see what they’d been getting up to…

 

 

Yes, perhaps he should do that. He pinched the bridge of his nose, “Kazu can’t be like this…”

 

 

Kirito finally managed to catch her wrist and spun around, he’d heard that, “...Aki…” he went red then white, what was his brother doing _here_?

 

 

“Do I _want_ to know what you’re doing with our Princess Kazu?” he asked lightly.

 

 

“Uh…” Kirito paled further. “Aki, I…” He wasn’t exactly happy to see the man, he didn’t know what to say.

 

 

Asuna rolled her eyes, poking her partner.

 

 

He gave her a curious look, “I’ll do it.”

 

 

“Alright…” he turned his eyes back to his brother, his hand sliding from her wrist into hers and squeezing gently.

 

 

Asuna met Heathcliff’s eyes, “It’s a game between us, one I started on the first floor before the boss fight.”

 

 

Heathcliff arched an eyebrow, “A game?” He asked. “You do know how out of context your game can be taken.”

 

 

“Oh we know,” Asuna gave him an ‘I dare you to stop me’ smirk, “That’s the point.”

 

 

And _there_ was that crazy girl he remembered so fondly…

 

 

“We’re actually planning to take it to the extreme.” Asuna added.

 

 

Heathcliff blinked. “I do hope you two are aware of what can happen if you get a little too into this game,” he said. He smirked as they blushed bright red.

 

 

“We are aware brother,” Kirito said as he got his blush under control. “At this point, I don’t think it matters where this ends.” The look he shot his brother was a knowing one, making Heathcliff wonder if his brother was aware of the betting going on.

 

 

_Probably_ , he thought to himself. _One of the reasons why I wanted him to become [Commander] was how he was able to do a lot of the legwork for things like this on his own. He will use Argo’s services, but only if he has to._

 

 

“Besides, I _like_ my Asuna-hime,” Kirito said, carefully emphasizing the word, trying to get his point across to his brother without tipping Asuna off. Especially since he didn’t know if she felt the same or not yet.

 

 

Heathcliff noticed and nodded. He could, and did understand what his little brother was saying.

 

 

* * *

 

Kizmel settled into her seat at the Hikawa Shrine with a groan, “How much longer should it take to get used to Earth's gravity again?” she wondered to herself. She watched as Mars’ civilian disguise walked into the room, “Did you have a good day?”

 

 

“Yes, Kizmel,” Rei replied, “Thank you. Um, when you are feeling up to it, I was wondering if you’d be willing to join us in doing patrol?”

 

 

Kizmel sighed, “I’m not sure if we will ever be ready for that.” she spoke professionally, as if talking to a colleague.

 

 

Rei nodded, “I thought that would be your answer, I’ll…” she paused, “You know the Princess fairly well, right?”

 

 

“I did,” Kizmel corrected. “In her previous life, I knew her very well. In this life… we only had a few weeks together. She is very much like Princess Serenity, but at the same time, different enough to make it clear that she is her own person.”

 

 

“If I knew her screen name, I might be able to take you to visit her in the near future,” Rei offered.

 

 

Kizmel considered Mars’ offer before nodding. It would allow her to reassure herself that the Princess is being properly cared for. “Asuna,” she said. “Her screen name is Asuna.”

 

 

Mars nodded. “I believe I can find which hospital she’s in. Mercury might…” She pulled out her phone, “Hang on Kizmel, I need to check something.” She put the phone to her ear, “Hi, Ami, can you check if Asuna is in your hospital? Yes, I’ll wait.”

 

 

Mars waited in silence for a few minutes, “She’s really there? That’s wonderful! Do you think Pluto would mind if I brought Kizmel to visit?”

 

 

Kizmel perked up as Mars put her phone away.

 

 

Mars smiled, “We can go whenever you like.”

 

 

Kizmel smiled widely, “Tomorrow?” she asked hopefully.

 

 

* * *

 

Kizmel walked into Asuna’s hospital room the next morning. The machines surrounding her Princess were different, but she understood that they held the same function as what she remembered Tilnel using the only time she could remember Princess Serenity getting sick.

 

 

There was something that she did not recognize on the bedside table. Curious, the elf inspected it and found it hinged. She was about to open it when she heard loud voices on the other side of the door.

 

 

Kizmel withdrew, placing a hand on her sword as the door banged open.

 

 

“-You have no idea what you are talking about Mother!” the young man shouted.

 

 

“I just don’t see the point, Kouichirou,” the woman said coldly, “She’s not going to wake up anytime soon so why bother to visit?”

 

 

“Because I can see what she’s up to,” Kouichirou snarls, “And if you would actually listen to me, you’d know that she’s doing very well for herself!”

 

 

Kizmel watched as two people, a young man and a woman who was approaching middle age, entered the room. She was thankful for the minor cloaking illusion around her at that moment, cast at Sailor Mars’ recommendation, as they walked in. It didn’t make her invisible, but so long as she didn’t draw attention to herself, they wouldn’t notice her. She moved silently to the side so as not to accidentally bump into either of them and kept a wary eye on both.

 

 

She wasn’t going to let either hurt Asuna.

 

 

“Oh yeah?” the young man snarled, opening the thing she’d been inspecting and turned it on, “ _I’ll show you_!”

 

 

Kizmel gaped as she watched him navigate the machine, her eyes going wide as she watched the encounter with the Titan Scorpion and Elph Lions several weeks ago play back before her eyes.

 

 

The woman watched what was being played with a neutral expression before turning to the young man. “Rather than stay as safe as possible, she is going out and routinely risking herself?” She asked. “I would hardly call that being fine, as you said. And that young man with her, he went off to fight something else. He is hardly an exemplar of protectiveness, as you claimed.”

 

 

“[Leader] would _never_ let her get hurt!” The young man protested. “Those things are tanks! I knew him, from the Beta. He went to engage those things to keep them from swarming the others. Just… just watch, mother.”

 

 

Kizmel’s interest was piqued so she leaned forward, being careful to not get in either’s way. She watched as Asuna saved the [Commander] and the way they moved in sync, defeating the last one. And then what happened after.

 

 

The woman gave the young man another glare as the video ended, “I really do not understand you, Kouichirou, I told you this was a waste of time.”

 

 

He’d already turned on a different video. The [Land Dragon] roared. “-Look out, Asuna!-” the boy’s arm wrapped around her middle and pulled the girl to safety.

 

 

“This happened a few days ago.” the young man gave his mother a glare. “Regardless of whether you see any point to this, mother, I will be coming here to see for myself that she’s fine. The entire point to this, is so that I know how Asuna is doing, and to show _you_ , that she is _not_ going to be the same person she was when this entire thing began.”

 

 

The woman turned and walked silently from the room, not even giving him an answer.

 

 

Kouichirou sighed, “At least Sugu appreciates my Stream for what it is, no matter what crazy antics her brother and my sister get up to…” he closed the video and turned on the Live Stream.

 

 

Kizmel watched with saddened eyes, perhaps she should reveal herself to Asuna’s brother…

 

 

* * *

 

Suguha slowed to a walk as she got to the hospital, a large grin on her face, “I’m here to visit Asuna,” she chirped, taking the pass she was handed and nearly skipped to the elevator. She could not wait to see what her brother was up to, and maybe this time she’d get to chat about what the pros and cons of each Alfheim race was so that she could make the right choice.

 

 

She didn’t bother knocking when she got there, “Kou!” she blinked in surprise, her good mood fleeing at the scowl on his face, “What happened?”

 

 

“My mother,” he grumbled, “She just doesn’t get that Asuna, that _no one_ is going to be the same when SAO ends…”

 

 

Suguha put a hand on his arm, “You get it and I get it. Ma gets it. That’s all that matters.” she paused, “Have you showed your father yet?”

 

 

Kouichirou shook his head, “Not yet, but I know that he’s going to take it better than my mother did.”

 

 

“See? Things are already looking up,” she tried to cheer him up, when something caught her attention. She glanced to the side. Nothing was… something _was_ there. “Kou,” she said quietly.

 

 

Kouichirou turned to her, “What’s up Sugu?” He asked.

 

 

“There’s someone here,” she whispered.

 

 

He turned to look, noticing the same thing she had, “Come out and I won’t call security.”

 

 

The young woman had black hair with a deep purple highlight and deeply tanned skin, “I am sorry to have startled you. I am a friend of hers and thought that I would come by.” Her way of speaking was almost archaic.

 

 

Suguha saw Kouichirou give the woman a look. “Odd, I don’t recall…” he began when his eyes widened. “No way, I… recognize you. Kizmel? But… how? You were an NPC inside…” he shook his head. “Sugu, it’s impossible, but… I’m going to have to talk to Heathcliff.”

 

 

Suguha scowled. “Why would you have to talk to… _him_?” She asked with a slight growl.

 

 

“Because he is likely to know what’s going on,” Kouichirou reasoned. “What do you have against the Game Master?” he asked.

 

 

Kizmel gave them a weak smile, “It’s nice to meet Asuna’s brother and the [Commander’s] sister.” She said. “Though, I must ask: how did you recognize me?”

 

 

Kouichirou just smirked. “You look enough like your NPC avatar,” he said. “It just took a moment for me to make the connection.”

 

 

“I see, well, I am using an illusion, so it should work well enough…” She brought her hand down in a gesture Kouichirou was very familiar with and then she started manipulating air. “Would you like me to send Captain Heathcliff a message for you?”

 

 

“What.” Suguha said, looking at Kouichirou, who was giving Kizmel a speculative look before he nodded.

 

 

“Ask him ‘how’, and I am willing to go to him if I need to. And I’m not going to take any of his non-answers this time.” Kouichirou instructed.

 

Suguha’s eyes almost popped out of her head as she watched Kizmel’s hands move, as if typing on a keyboard. “And sent, I should get a reply, soon, if he’s not in the game at the moment.”

 

 

“How?” Sugua asked.

 

 

Kouichirou shrugged. “Magic would be my guess,” he said.

 

 

“But magic’s not…” Suguha started and then shook her head. “Right, we have Youma attacks and the Senshi fighting them.”

 

 

Kizmel turned to look at the screen. “Right now [Commander Kirito] and Asuna are learning how to use a different kind of magic to what the Senshi use,” she said. “Not as powerful, but more versatile.”

 

 

Suguha looked skeptical. “But I thought…”

 

 

Kizmel chuckled, “Magic was merely forgotten.” She turned to Kouichirou, “You have it… as does your friend, but I don’t know if either of you can use it…”

 

 

“An apt way of explaining it, Kizmel,” Kayaba said as he walked into the hospital room.

 

 

She stood, bowing. “Captain! I didn’t expect you to be in this hospital…”

 

 

“I have some escorts outside,” he smiled wanly, “So this is where you’ve been when not with Kazu, Suguha…”

 

 

Suguha glared heatedly up at him, “You don’t get to call him that!” she almost snarled.

 

 

Kayaba gave her a serious look, “He is my brother Suguha, and he has not objected yet.”

 

 

Kouichirou looked thoughtful. “You know, I think I recorded your… confrontation? Reunion?” he shrugged, “Not sure what to call it. I’ll show Sugu later. But I think right now there are a few things you need to explain to us.”

 

 

Kayaba gave them a slight smirk, “Keep in mind that I can’t tell you everything, because it might get back to those we don’t want them to.”

 

 

“This wasn’t caused by terrorists, was it?” Kouichirou asked.

 

 

Kayaba nodded. “In a loose sense of the word, it was,” he said. “Much of my efforts inside have been to fix that, but the entire thing is proving… troublesome.”

 

 

“Troublesome?” Suguha snorted in disbelief, “That’s the best you could come up with?”

 

 

Kayaba did something he normally wouldn’t dare, he reached out and ruffled his younger cousin’s hair, “Unfortunately, it’s the only one that works, that won’t ‘give the game away’ as it were. I know _exactly_ who sabotaged all the NerveGear, but we can’t do anything about it, yet.” He sat down heavily in a chair by Asuna’s bedside, “And while I might know who is behind this disaster, that does not mean I’m in a position to act. Thousands of lives depend on me _fixing_ this problem before any more people die or are crippled for the rest of their lives.”

 

 

“You were making Alfheim Online at the same time right?” Kouichirou ventured.

 

 

Kayaba nodded. “I was, but the sheer scale is an order of magnitude more than what is required for SAO,” he said. “I had only started it to set the seed of what would take me a year or more to do. Alfheim’s base code is essentially a port of SAO, with the same graphics engine and such, which cuts down what would otherwise require years of just the base development, to months.”

 

 

“Why does it take so much more?” Suguha asked as she used her fingers to put her hair back in order, her curiosity breaking through any animosity she might be feeling.

 

 

“Sword Art Online takes place on a single massive structure, Castle Aincrad,” Kayaba said. “It is ten kilometers in diameter on the first floor, narrowing to a kilometer on the top floor. The area that needs to be rendered is less than three thousand square kilometers. If you take the volume, it is close to sixty-nine thousand cubic kilometers. Alfheim is the size of a small continent, with an upper limit of five kilometers for the height factor.”

 

 

Kouichirou’s eyes wandered from the Game Master to Kizmel, this math wasn’t new he’d crunched the numbers himself one day out of boredom. Wait, if she was here, then didn’t that mean…? ”If Kizmel is here, then does that mean that Aincrad is or was a real place?”

 

 

Kayaba looked at Kouichirou with an approving look in his eyes. “It _was_ a real place,” he said. “I cannot confirm whether it still exists or not.”

 

 

“And it would take too much time and money to try and find out,” Kouichirou groaned, “Depending on where it is, or used to be.” It had taken the American space probe Juno five years to get to Jupiter and it had taken the Cassini Huygens probe nearly seven years to get to Saturn. And it would take at least that long to send another spacecraft to _wherever_ the real Castle Aincrad might be. _Why did the Solar System have to be so stupidly vast?_

 

 

Suguha caught on Kouichirou’s line of thought, “Are you thinking about Alfheim too?” she turned back to her cousin, “If Aincrad was a real place then could Alfheim have been a real place too? You created both after all.”

 

 

Kayaba nodded. “It was, and to the best of my knowledge, it might still be there,” he said. “But, much like Aincrad, it would still be out of reach.”

 

 

“Can you tell us where?” Kouichirou asked.

 

 

“Not at this time,” Kayaba said. “The walls have ears, and I know at least one Youma that had infiltrated one hospital. It was killed by Sailor Mercury, so the Senshi are keeping a close watch on those trapped in SAO. Whether it was an attack of opportunity, or was planned, I cannot tell.”

 

 

Kouichirou nodded and decided to change the subject, “Sugu and I are going to be beta testers for ALO, do you have any advice for rolling a race?” That wasn’t a ‘no’...

 

 

Kayaba chuckled. “It depends on your preferred style,” he said. “Each race has their strengths and weaknesses for game balance reasons,” he said. “Have you read over the available races and their data?”

 

 

Kouichirou and Suguha nodded.

 

 

“Then I would recommend picking one which best reflects how you wish to play.”

 

 

“I was thinking I’d go with the Sylph race,” Suguha poundered, “Their speed appeals to me.”

 

 

“I was thinking of trying something new actually,” Kouichirou grinned, “I was planning to go with the Puka.”

 


	19. The Mystery Deepens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More mysteries are discovered.

Kirito pushed the door to floor ten open and froze in shock, blocking the doorway. “What in the…” This, this looked like the old videos he’d seen of the moon landings! “Is this a Moonscape?” It was just as he remembered it from the [Beta]! How had his brother managed to keep the other devs away from the floor?  
  
  
  
Asuna pushed him out of the way and stepped over his sprawled form in the dust. “This place, it’s…” she covered her eyes with a hand. “ _She_ ’s extremely familiar with it…”  
  
  
  
Kirito shook his head, sending light grey dust everywhere, giving her a playful glare as he got back to his feet. “Well, Aki does seem to think that _she_ is the Moon Princess so…”  
  
  
  
“ _Praśānta Samudra_ ,” Asuna said quietly and then blinked. “I... know what that means, Sea of Serenity, but…” She took a step out and almost lost her balance due to an apparent shift in the gravity. How could she have known that?  
  
  
  
Kirito caught her around the middle, “Careful, Hime.” He looked down at her in concern. Even the Gravity Mechanic was the same! How had Aki managed that?  
  
  
  
She snuggled close, “Yeah, that was a bit too close, I wonder if there are any mobs on the way to…” Her eyes narrowed, “...The Capital?”  
  
  
  
His arms tightened slightly before he let go of her. “Why’d you trip?” Kirito asked.  
  
  
  
“The gravity feels off,” Asuna frowned, “I think we should check for a quest to fix it and get that done before opening the floor…”  
  
  
  
“I’ll let the others know that there might be a bit of a wait then,” Kirito opened his menu and got to work on the message. “And done,” he dismissed the menu, “We’d better go.”  
  
  
  
As they made their way to their destination, both Kirito and Asuna were struck by just how eerie the place was to them. The lower gravity allowed them to take bounding steps which they had a lot of fun with, but the silence of everything, the absence of anything around them…  
  
  
  
“It’s like,” Asuna stopped, “It’s like the silence after a disaster almost…”  
  
  
  
“I agree, this silence has my instincts on high,” Kirito agreed as he looked around. As fun as pretending to be those American Astronauts were, Kirito already hated being on this floor. There was nothing. No mobs, no NPCs… just, nothing. “And to think, I used to like this Floor.” It felt exactly the same as it had in the [Beta], but with his instincts screaming at him the way they were it was at least ten times worse.  
  
  
  
Asuna was leading for once, letting _her_ lead them to where they might need to go.  
  
  
  
From the dust rose a huge crystal palace with domed roofs plated in a brightly shining gold. “Whoa…” Kirito said in awe.  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded. “I know, right?” She asked with a painful grin. “ _She_ … her memories show that this might have been mundane, but there was always something about approaching it from outside to her.”  
  
  
  
“What do you think this place is?” he asked.  
  
  
  
“I… I think it is supposed to be SAO’s rendition of… the Imperial Capital,” Asuna said. “The palace where the Silver Empire was ruled from.” She shook her head. “It’s hard to really sort it from her memories, to her this place was always home, but… she was the princess of… oh my.”  
  
  
  
“Asuna?” Kirito asked.  
  
  
  
“Kirito, I don’t know how long it has been since… then, but at one time, the place this was supposed to represent _was the capital of the entire solar system_ , I think,” Asuna said uncertainly. “Well, all except Earth, at least.”  
  
  
  
“...What?” he asked numbly, his brain blue screened for a moment. “But… If… Where was Aincrad supposed to _be_ then?” He turned to look back at the palace, “The _whole system_ was populated?”  
  
  
  
“Something like that?” Asuna ventured, she was having trouble with some of those other memories in her head too. “If we’re going to find that quest… it’s going to be here…”  
  
  
  
“Well, you seem to know where we are going, so I’ll just follow you then,” Kirito joked lightly, trying to lighten the mood.  
  
  
  
Asuna giggled, happy that he was relying on her for once and not the other way around. She gently placed a hand to one of the enormous doors and pushed. The door was light and made no sound as it swung wide. “Before we go on this quest, I think we should make sure we know where the Teleport Gate is.”  
  
  
  
“Sounds like a plan,” Kirito gave her a grin, “Do you think _she_ remembers the layout of this place or are we going to end up getting lost?”  
  
  
  
Asuna paused, “You know what, getting lost sounds like all kinds of _fun_ right now…” her amber eyes shone in delight, “And because it was your idea… You’re It!” she pecked his cheek and ran off into the palace, choosing a random direction and ignoring whatever it was that the princess at the back of her mind wanted to do.  
  
  
  
Back in the entrance hall, Kirito had a blush and small smile on his face, “You’d better run!” he called out.  
  
  
  
Taking a few careful steps, he tested how the wonky gravity worked in the palace before taking off at full speed to chase her. He doubted he’d be having this much fun if he’s stuck to his plan of playing Solo in the beginning.  
  
  
  
Even if she was trying to ignore the Princess in her head, Asuna still found herself heading in a specific direction. They still needed to find the Teleport Gate and restore the gravity to normal. The memories were guiding her unerringly to a spot that was very familiar to her, and if Heathcliff knew the Princess as well as Asuna had a feeling he did…  
  
  
  
She stopped and looked around. The room wasn’t very large and there was a woman standing at a large bay window, looking forlorn. This was the first NPC she’d seen on the whole floor so far. But, who was she? Asuna was reluctant to look into the Princess’ memories, with them so close to the surface because of the floor, she was almost deathly afraid of losing herself to them. If she was going to lose herself to them, she had a feeling that it would be here. Even without looking into those memories, the NPC looked scarily familiar.  
  
  
  
Still, it wouldn’t do to be rude. “Excuse me, can I help you?” She asked.  
  
  
  
The NPC turned to look at her, she had long blonde, almost white hair and that hair style. Something about that hair style was very familiar. “Welcome Traveler,” she said regally with a small smile.  
  
  
  
Asuna bit back a gasp that would have turned into a sob and tried to shake the feeling off.  
  
  
  
“The [Gravity Stabilizer] has seemed to have stopped working,” Asuna said, somehow, knowing specifically what she needed to say to activate the quest. She heard the sounds of Kirito catching up, his quiet cursing as he struggled to maintain his balance at points being a clear indicator of his approach. “We would be grateful if you could direct us there so that we can reactivate it, or determine what is required to do so.”  
  
  
  
The NPC smiled, “Are you here alone Traveler?”  
  
  
  
Asuna shook her head, “No, my partner will be arriving soon.”  
  
  
  
“Then,” the NPC smiled, “We would be glad to show you where you need to go.”  
  
  
  
Asuna held an arm out, and Kirito stumbled through the door and right into it, “Are you alright, Kirito-kun?” She asked playfully.  
  
  
  
“I hate this damned gravity,” He groaned, leaning against her. “Thanks for catching me.”  
  
  
  
She gave him a smile as she helped him to straighten. “Well let’s fix it then.” Asuna whispered and then turned to the NPC. “If you would please lead the way then?”  
  
  
  
The NPC nodded. “Follow us then,” she said.  
  
  
  
She led them past the gardens, where Asuna spied the Teleport Gate and deep into the palace, “Since the [Gravity Stabilizer] stopped working this place has been silent, everything seems to have stopped, We were starting to become concerned that no one would arrive to fix it.” She stopped in front of a door, “This is where We keep it. Please Travelers, bring life back to the Capital, We beg you.”  
  
  
  
Asuna took the lead and placed her hand on the door. As with the Entrance, it opened soundlessly. Thankfully, her fear of finding a maze was wrong and all there was, was a large machine in the center of the room. There was a large round, pink… thing at shoulder height with something completely white lying on the ground just before it.  
  
  
  
Kneeling, Asuna picked it up, “Kirito-kun, what is this?”  
  
  
  
Kirito looked over her shoulder, “Huh, I’d been wondering what that drop was for…”  
  
  
  
He opened his menu and pulled something out. “This should be what we need.” He pulled out something that was nearly identical to what she was holding, but the one in his hand was bright pink, almost red.  
  
  
  
Asuna stepped aside and Kirito stepped forward, reaching inside. “Ok that feels _really strange_ ,” he muttered as he put what he was holding down and pulled his hand out of the compartment.  
  
  
  
The machine began to glow, and the familiar sounds of a machine doing what it was supposed to do started up.  
  
  
  
Asuna stumbled into her partner as the gravity went back to normal and they both blushed at the contact. Thankfully, they didn’t fall to the floor, that would have been even more embarrassing.  
  
  
  
“Thank you so much Travelers, whenever you are here, please, stay in the palace. We shall have a room made up for you to use.”  
  
  
  
Asuna could have sworn she caught an amused gleam in the NPC’s eyes when she said that.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Luna chuckled as she watched Silica feed her pet, “So, what kind of quests should we look at doing?” she asked curiously, opening her guide to the right page for the floor they were on.  
  
  
  
“Are there any exterminate the pest quests? They can be fun.” Silica looked over Pina’s fluffy head.  
  
  
  
“I think there are a few in the catacombs,” Luna frowned, flipping through the pages of the guidebook. “And I have heard rumors about in-game Youma sightings there, along with the list of debuffs they can cause.” The thought of going up against those monsters made her shiver.  
  
  
  
“Fighting Youma actually sounds like fun…” Silica mused, “Are there any recommendations on how to fight them?”  
  
  
  
Luna gave Silica an odd look. “Fun?” She asked, Luna chuckled in a way that made it clear that she wasn’t amused. “Silica, I’m from the Minato Ward, and I’ve seen and been caught in the crossfire of enough Youma fights with the Senshi that I wouldn’t call them _fun_. Exciting? Oh, they’re exciting all right. But I wouldn’t call the idea of fighting them _fun_.”  
  
  
  
“But, at least we can beat them here, right?” Silica asked.  
  
  
  
“There is that,” Luna agreed slowly. “But I’m not looking forward to any quests which focus on hunting down and fighting them anyway.”  
  
  
  
Silica could understand her friend’s logic, she doubted that she’d find it fun either if she lived in the Minato Ward. ...Then again, she lived in Nerima, so she had no right to talk. “We get weird shit in Nerima all the time, so our definition of fun would likely be different than yours,” she shrugged. “But I can see how you wouldn’t want to fight Youma, since you live in Minato.”  
  
  
  
Luna smiled, “Thank you for understanding.”  
  
  
  
Silica waved a hand, “I bet they drop some cool stuff, but if you want to avoid them, we don’t have to do any quests dealing with them. I’ll do those on my own, and bring back anything you might be able to use.”  
  
  
  
Luna grimaced, “If you say so…”  
  
  
  
Silica looked around and spotted a structure. “Oh, I wonder what’s in there!” She called as she darted off towards it.  
  
  
  
“Silica, wait up!” Luna called, following her young companion. She looked at the structures, a series of three small buildings that couldn’t be more than a meter to the side with a single door on each. She wondered what the crescent moon meant, part of her felt that she should recognize it. But she couldn’t.  
  
  
  
Luna decided that she really didn’t like it here. It wasn’t anything overt, but the entire floor had the kind of atmosphere that reminded her too much of the very signs that Minato residents eventually learned to sense that precluded a Youma attack. Her instincts were telling her to get clear in a hurry.  
  
  
  
She heard Silica scream and started running in that direction, hearing the sounds of fighting inside the third one. She heard something shatter and picked up her pace only to see Silica dart out and slam the door to the building shut, breathing heavily.  
  
  
  
“H-Hanako,” the girl breathed out.  
  
  
  
Luna blinked. A Hanako, here? She then looked at the buildings and then started to laugh. This was hilarious...  
  
  
  
“It’s not funny!” Silica protested.  
  
  
  
“Silica,” Luna said. “Look at the… buildings. And think about which one you entered, and what came out to surprise you.”  
  
  
  
Silica took a moment and then got a disgusted look on her face. “Ew!” She complained. “Ew. ew, ew, _EW!_ ” She then glared at Luna who started laughing again. “We’re heading to town,” she declared. “And then I’m going to head to an inn or bathhouse, and take a bath.” She then stalked off, grumbling irritably.  
  
  
  
Luna chuckled and followed her young friend. To think, Silica’s curiosity had led her into a shithouse, only to have to deal with a Hanako. What would come next?  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Well, if it isn’t B-chan and The Bro~!”  
  
  
  
Beryl choked on her wine as Klein spat out his beer, “Argo don’t do that!” Beryl scolded turning angry green eyes on her younger friend, “If I have to take you across my knee young lady…”  
  
  
  
Argo waved a hand, “You know you love me B-chan,” she teased with a grin, “Anyway, ‘Sephone-chan found this and I’ve been trying to look into it.” she opened her menu and made it visible.  
  
  
  
“[Crystal Conception]?” Beryl’s eyes widened, “Do you have any idea how useful this will be?”  
  
  
  
Argo huffed, “Of course I do. I haven’t found anything yet though. There might be something on the Tenth, but Kii-bou told me to wait before going up there.”  
  
  
  
Beryl rolled her eyes, “I hope you told Persephone to go for it no matter what you find.”  
  
  
  
“As if I’d do anything else,” Argo rolled her eyes at her older friend, “That ability is much too valuable to not have. And if I can discover the requirements then you can bet that I’m going to try and obtain it myself.”  
  
  
  
Beryl’s eyes narrowed, “And if you do, you will force everyone else to pay through the nose for them, I know you Argo, and that’s exactly what you’ll do.” she sighed, “We had better keep this thing as much a secret as possible…”  
  
  
  
“You’re no fun B-chan,” Argo pouted playfully, “But you’ll help me, right?”  
  
  
  
The redhead rolled her eyes, “Sure,” she replied as a ding told her she had a message waiting. Tapping the icon, she looked through it. “The Tenth is safe to enter now.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna’s eye widened as she took in the room the NPC had showed them to. “This is… _her_ room…” but shouldn’t this be off limits to everyone?  
  
  
  
Kirito looked back at her from the doors to the balcony, “They are certainly grand enough to belong to a princess,” he agreed.  
  
  
  
“As if I don’t have enough to worry about,” Asuna muttered. “Even the system is now… recognizing me as… oh damn.” She put her head in her hands.  
  
  
  
“Asuna?” Kirito took a step towards his partner.  
  
  
  
“Kirito, that NPC, I _know_ who she was based off of,” Asuna said.  
  
  
  
“Someone she knew well I take it?” he asked, sitting on the bed.  
  
  
  
“Knew well?” Asuna’s laughed a laugh that quickly became a sob, “Kirito-kun… _That was_ her _mother_!” She couldn’t hold the tears back any more.  
  
  
  
Kirito was at her side a moment later, “Her mother?”  
  
  
  
She leaned against him, nodding into his chest, “It’s stupid, but _she_ felt hurt at being called ‘Traveler’ and in turn, it hurts me.”  
  
  
  
He pet her hair, “I see.” He looked down at her, “ _She_ is close to the surface then?”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded, “If ever there is a place where I might lose who I am, I think it would be here.” She admitted fearfully.  
  
  
  
“Then I don’t think you should go anywhere without me on this floor.” he pressed his cheek to hers, “We need to clear this floor as soon as we can, I don’t want my best friend to lose herself.”  
  
  
  
“Our game should keep that from happening,” she paused, looking up at his with scared eyes, “I hope.”  
  
  
  
In response, Kirito pulled her close, silently lending her all the strength he had.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Argo’s eyes were wide as she took in the royal gardens of the facsimile of Palace at the center of the Silver Empire, “Wow, nice place Kii-bou, A-chan,” she gave the two a playful grin as she hopped off the Teleport Gate.  
  
  
  
Kirito huffed, “I used to like this floor Argo.” He sighed almost silently.  
  
  
  
“Why don’t you anymore?” [The Rat] gave him a confused look. Being on the Moon in the [Beta] had been all kinds of fun.  
  
  
  
“Sure it’s kind of cool, to be on a moonscape, but…” he looked to the side, where Asuna was studying some of the flowers, “I’m afraid Asuna-hime will lose herself if I’m not here. At least until she can integrate those memories properly.”  
  
  
  
Argo’s eyes narrowed, “You shouldn’t worry so much Kii-bou.”  
  
  
  
“I have to,” he replied almost coldly, “Who will if I don’t?”  
  
  
  
Argo watched as he walked deeper into the garden to where Asuna was holding a plucked flower and pulled some hair behind her ear, using the flower, a [Lunar Rose] to pin it there. She noted the ways Asuna lit up and hugged him. The way they looked… “I wonder if the [Game Master] miscalculated…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“I’m beginning to agree with you, I hate this floor,” she whispered that night, curled up with her head on his chest.  
  
  
  
“The gravity was the worst before we fixed it,” Kirito grumbled, “Don’t be afraid to wake me if you have nightmares, Hime.”  
  
  
  
Asuna pushed herself up and smiled down at him, “I’ll wake you if I have a bad dream, promise.” she lay back down, snuggling closer, “Will you do the same?”  
  
  
  
“I doubt I’ll have one, but yes, I promise,” the gold sparks in his soft, ebony eyes gleamed in the soft moonlight, “Nothing can harm us when we are together.” he reached up and gently brushed some of her hair behind one of her ears.  
  
  
  
“Un,” she agreed sleepily, “Goodnight, my Kirito-kun,” Asuna breathed, falling asleep.  
  
  
  
He blushed lightly, his smile widening, “Goodnight, my Asuna-hime.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The NPC closed the door quietly, a small smile on her face, She turned to her companion, “Well, you didn’t approve of Endymion, do you approve of that young man in there?”  
  
  
  
“I do,” Heathcliff stepped out of the shadows, “And not simply because he’s my brother.”  
  
  
  
“You don’t remember what you didn’t like about him, do you?”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff shook his head, “I don’t.”  
  
  
  
“And I am only a pale imitation of her mother,” the NPC replied, “So I can never understand.”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff gave the NPC a searching look as she walked towards the gardens. And again, an NPC wasn’t going to script, and if he were to check the logs...  
  
  


* * *

[Crossing Field](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uzXxAWPqrY)

  
  
  
Kirito woke slowly, it was a habit he needed to break. A peek out the window showed him that it was still the middle of the night. What could have woken… he could feel the almost uncomfortable pressure of his partner’s grip. That was about as close as the system could get to simulating pain. Something that he was glad for.  
  
  
  
Turning his attention to his partner, he noticed that she was shaking in her sleep, “Another nightmare? Or could it be a memory?” he wondered, pulling her closer. He began humming that melody again. He wasn’t sure how he remembered it, it was his brother who had taught him the tune. However, it seemed to calm her and she settled down from the nightmare and into an uneasy sleep.  
  
  
  
He let out a soft sigh but didn’t stop. How many nights would he have to do this? How long would he have to worry about her sanity? Kirito pet her hair and she calmed farther. “I’ll always be with you, I’ll give you everything I have…” he breathed, starting to fall back to sleep. “For I am yours… and you… are… mine.” His words trailed off and he went back to sleep.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes were wide as she heard Kirito’s sleepy words and she was thankful that he hadn’t been looking at her face as he said them. She knew those words, those words belonged to a rather fast paced love song, it was one that Serenity had known well, it was a favorite that she’d listened to often. How could he know…? Had his brother taught? But then, why? Why had Heathcliff taught Kirito that?  
  
  
  
Asuna was sure that her cheeks were bright red. Had he even realized that he hadn’t been speaking in Japanese? Lunarian was a beautiful and powerful language. She shifted positions slowly. “Gods above I think I might be in love with you…”  
  
  
  
It felt good, to admit it, even if only to herself. She tucked her head under his chin and let herself follow him back into the realm of Morpheus. She never noticed that the tune was too slow.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Liz couldn’t believe her eyes when she got her first look at the tenth floor. “...Are we on the moon now?”  
  
  
  
“Definitely looks like it,” Nezha agreed looking around the garden, “We should find a place to set up shop before all the good spots are taken.”  
  
  
  
Liz nodded with a big grin.  
  
  
  
They toured the palace for a bit before heading to the market. They were having trouble getting over the fact that the floor looked like the moon. The rest of the [Braves] thought the floor was awesome, but something about the floor made Liz nervous. Maybe she should check in with The Married Couple…  
  
  
  
“Liz?” She heard Asuna’s voice call. “What are you doing here, and with the [Legend Braves] of all people?”  
  
  
  
She turned, “Well, fancy seeing you Asuna,” Liz grinned, “I was just thinking about you and Kirito.” She turned to watch as the [Braves] set up shop, “As for these guys? Kirito sent them to me.”  
  
  
  
“Well, I’m glad they decided to take my advice,” Kirito’s sudden appearance caused Liz to jump. “I thought you’d wait a bit before coming up here though,” he slung an arm around Asuna’s shoulders, watching the [Braves] work. “You’re all a bit under leveled to be up here, aren’t you?”  
  
  
  
“Maybe just a little,” Liz admitted. “But setting up shop here is as good a place as any for the next few weeks.” She then smirked at the two. “So, I heard from Argo that there was a bit of trouble before the floor opened? And you two seem to be getting rather close...”  
  
  
  
Asuna rolled her eyes, “Well of course we are Liz, Kirito-kun and I are partners. That means something here.”  
  
  
  
“Indeed,” Kirito agreed, kissing her cheek, “If you need me, Hime, I will be by the food stalls.” he walked away slowly, his hand sliding from one shoulder to the other and then down her arm.  
  
  
  
Asuna smiled, “Of course, don’t forget to bring me something.”  
  
  
  
“Ingredients or ready-made?” Kirito turned back to her.  
  
  
  
“Some of both will do, there’s this one recipe that I’ve wanted to try for the last few days…”  
  
  
  
“I’ll see what I can find then,” Kirito exchanged a grin with Asuna and left her with Liz.  
  
  
  
“...By the way Liz…” Asuna turned to her friend.  
  
  
  
Liz turned back to look into her friend’s eyes, “Yes, Asuna?”  
  
  
  
Asuna was studying what her friend was wearing. “Kirito-kun is right, you look like you’re playing at being your father’s apprentice, You need a wardrobe change.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Once he was far enough away, Kirito pulled up his menu and turned on his [Tracking] ability. His brother might or might call this paranoia, but he didn’t care. He’d do whatever it took to keep Asuna from losing herself to a set of memories that did not belong to her. He kept one eye on the mini map that had opened in his HUD, in the corner under where his and Asuna’s HP Bars were located as he went about his errand.  
  
  
  
He had never been to this part of the Floor, they hadn’t found this city, or it just hadn’t been in the [Beta], but Kirito was looking forward to trying the food this floor had to offer.  
  
  
  
Window shopping could be fun, but he wasn’t just here to look. Several things he’d seen looked like they might be exclusive to the Floor, and he wondered what they could bring to the table. If items were unique to a floor, they tended to have utility outside of their stated purpose. It just required some flexible thinking.  
  
  
  
One such item looked more like it might be a quest reward, so what was it doing here? “Excuse me sir,” Kirito got the NPC’s attention, “What’s this harp?”  
  
  
  
“Ah, that?” The NPC looked confused, “Why did I put this out?”  
  
  
  
So it was attached to a quest of some kind. He’d have to bring Asuna with him later to try triggering the Quest for it. He wondered what it was for.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba sighed as he stepped out of his room, he had some time. Perhaps he should visit his brother…  
  
  
  
With a firm nod he straightened and made his way to the much younger boy’s room. Coming to the right room, Kayaba entered quietly, closing the door softly as he looked around, there were a few ‘Get Well’ cards and there was a single bouquet of flowers on the table, but other than that, the room was bare.  
  
  
  
He sighed as he sat down, “I’m not surprised that you managed to impress me in the [Beta], Kazu, you always put everything into something that grabbed your interest.” That included all the spells that he’d begun teaching the boy as a tot. “No, the irony is not lost on me. I will admit that I was surprised that you let our Princess tag along, since you always prefered playing Solo back then. But I think I was more surprised when I found out Asuna was our Princess to begin with.”  
  
  
  
“I’m actually not sure how to feel about the choice I made,” Kayaba shook his head, “But the fact remains, you are the best choice to lead them.” he poked Kazuto’s exposed cheek, “You know, Aunt Midori wants me to make sure you survive the game somehow, but I can’t think of a way to make it fair. Perhaps I just need more time to think about it.”  
  
  
  
He looked up when the door opened, “Kizmel? What are you doing here?” He asked, “I thought you might stay by Asuna’s side.”  
  
  
  
The disguised elf gave him a toothy grin, “You asked me to watch over the [Commander] as well, so I thought I might come by to see him as well.” she put a hand on the boy’s arm, “I wasn’t expecting either of them to look this bad…”  
  
  
  
“It’s been three months Kizmel,” Kayaba replied. “No one in the Army is going to ‘look good’. We’re keeping the worst at bay, the beds have an electric current that contracts and relaxes the muscles, which alongside some physical therapy used for comatose patients, helps keep the muscle atrophy down, but there is only so much in the way of nutrients and calories that can be provided without more invasive procedures, though if this continues for much longer, those procedures may become necessary.”  
  
  
  
“And what would those… ‘procedures’ be?” Kizmel asked with some hesitation.  
  
  
  
“Right now, we are ensuring that nutritional needs and proper hydration are maintained through intravenous insertion,” Kayaba said, gesturing to a bag connected to a tube that entered Kirito’s arm. “This should be sufficient, but doctors far more trained and experienced in medical matters than I am may decide on more long-term feeding solutions which can involve minor surgical procedures. Little risk, but it will be an added complication in their recovery, as the removal of the tube also requires the location where the surgery took place to heal properly.”  
  
  
  
Kizmel nodded in understanding. She wasn’t a healer, or even a proper medic, but some of her training had included the kinds of things that would not have been out of place in the skillsets of Shadow Operations soldiers. First aid, trauma care, and ensuring someone’s survival in the long term until dedicated healers could get to a patient were a part of that.  
  
  
  
The methods were different in this day and age, but the basics were still similar. Tilnel was far more qualified in this respect, and she would brief her sister on this. Perhaps she could come up with something and even bring it up to Sailor Mercury to pass on. Or she could at least help in setting things up so that more invasive methods weren’t needed.  
  
  
  
Minor as they might be, anything that would require the recovery period to be extended should be avoided if practical. Especially for their [Commander] and Princess.  
  
  
  
“Tilnel has expressed the interest in visiting Asuna, and the Commander,” Kizmel admitted, “I’m not sure if I want her to be exposed to the constraints that Earth medicine has to deal with yet.”


	20. Harping on a Quest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Important quest items are important.

  
Tilnel looked around one last time before she opened the door, her sister didn’t know she was here, but Tilnel didn’t care how bad her charge might look. She just needed to see the girl with her own eyes.

 

 

Stepping inside, she closed the door quietly and looked at the figure on the bed. As expected, the Princess’ reincarnation was showing the signs of being in an effective coma for months. She cast a few diagnostic spells, starting with minor ones that wouldn’t risk interfering with the machinery attached to her and began to catalogue her charge’s wellbeing. Her training allowed her to slip into the clinical mindset and shunt her emotions to the side easily.

 

 

Her vitals were stable, her nutrition was adequate for the time being, and she could detect strong levels of brain activity, but the machine was providing some interference. In other circumstances, she would remove it, but she was fully aware that doing so would risk killing the Princess at this time.

 

 

All in all, the Princess was as healthy as could reasonably be expected, given the limitations of this era’s medical science. The lack of magic would be worrisome, but she had talked with Sailor Mercury, and knew that what they could do with only technology was impressive. Not to the level that adding magic to the healing and treatment process could accomplish, but impressive in its own way nonetheless.

 

 

But she had been the Princess’ personal physician back during the Empire. So, impressive as this was for this era, she wasn’t all that awed on a personal level.

 

 

_Still, if I knew that this level of technology could accomplish this much, I could have easily talked the Royal Academy into researching such,_ she thought. _It may have made treating some injuries and maladies much easier, if slower._

 

 

That was for another time, the Royal Academy would have to be rebuilt, as would everything else, but that was for later, after the Dark Kingdom was handled. And if the Princess was interested in rebuilding the Empire at any rate.

 

 

She eyed the primitive computer on the bedside table, it was open, on. That had to mean that whoever had been here would likely be back soon, she’d have to leave before then.

 

 

* * *

 

Kizmel watched her sister pace, “Better than you thought?”

 

 

“Indeed,” Tilnel agreed, “Our Princess is in better condition than I would have otherwise hoped. What they’ve been able to do with only technology is all well and good, but I hardly find it impressive.” She waved a hand dismissively. “And I still need to speak with Captain Heathcliff, about this partner she has.”

 

 

“The Commander will not let anything happen to her,” Kizmel mused. “I spent weeks fighting alongside both the Princess and him, and even watched as he picked up a protege of his own.”

 

 

Tilnel scoffed. “It’s not his fighting skills or capabilities in protecting her that I’m concerned about,” she said. “You’re a better judge of that than I am. It’s his personality and whether he is a proper companion for her.”

 

 

Kizmel shook her head, “I don’t think you need to worry about that either, Sister,” the older elf pulled out the communicator - ‘phone’ - that Captain Heathcliff had given her. “He is quite smitten.” She handed her sister the device and pressed play.

 

 

Tilnel took it and watched the video, “So?”

 

 

Kizmel chuckled, “So, everyone who has met and spent any time at all with them are betting on when they will get married in there.”

 

 

* * *

 

Kouichirou grinned broadly as he led his father into Asuna’s hospital room,”So, you remember that thing I set up, right?”

 

 

“That Stream that Asuna enjoyed watching? Yes, what about it?” Shouzou asked.

 

 

Kouichirou grinned, “I forgot to turn it off.”

 

 

“And that’s a good thing, how, Kouichirou?” the older man asked.

 

 

Kouichirou smirked as he turned the computer back on and went through the videos he’d already saved, “Would you like to see how Asuna’s doing, father?”

 

 

Shouzou nodded hesitantly.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito smiled as he tugged Asuna through the crowd, “Come on Asuna, I think I found another quest for you.”

 

 

“I’m tired, you got me up too early,” she complained, “I was nice and comfy and warm before my pillow decided to leave me behind!”

 

 

He chuckled, “Is that all I am now, your pillow?”

 

 

“You are when we’re in bed!” Asuna snapped back.

 

 

* * *

 

Shouzou looked at Kouichirou with a raised eyebrow.

 

 

Kouichirou had the grace to look embarrassed. “It’s something they’re doing due to all the rumors that are apparently about their relationship,” he said sheepishly. “They decided to play along, or play it all to a higher extreme to get reactions from the players.”

 

 

“I see,” Shouzou said neutrally and looked at the screen. “And from how several players are looking at them, it seems to be working.”

 

 

Kouichirou nodded, “There’s even a pool on when they finally get married in game going on.” He chuckled, “I think it’s cute.” He looked through his library of recorded videos, “I remember Kirito from the [Beta] and there’s no one else I would trust her safety and well being with.”

 

 

Shouzou frowned, “Show me why you believe that.”

 

 

Kouichirou finally picked a video.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito chuckled as he and Asuna came to the right vendor, only, the harp was missing. He wasn’t sure how to trigger the quest so he’d have to do this the hard way… “Sir, was there anything you needed help with?”

 

 

“Yes actually,” the NPC agreed. “I was expecting a shipment of [Lunar Spices] and the shipment is late.”

 

 

“We’ll see if we can’t find out what happened sir,” Asuna sighed, “This had better be worth it, Kirito-kun…” she grumbled.

 

 

“It will and if we need to do more than one quest to get that thing I saw yesterday, then that just means we’ll have to do every quest that NPC has.” Kirito replied, “...As annoying as a few of them might turn out to be…”

 

 

Asuna opened her menu and opened her Map, “So, where are we going then?”

 

 

Kirito looked over her shoulder, “We didn’t really get to explore this floor, but I think…” he pointed to a spot near the [Safe Zone], “That the spice will be right around here.”

 

 

Asuna nodded, “Then we should get going.”

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito’s senses flared and his hand snapped out, grabbing Asuna’s wrist, he pulled his partner close and threw his weight to one side as the dust under them erupted spectacularly, revealing a huge, worm, with a three part mouth.

 

 

“...Is that a Sandworm from Frank Herbert’s Dune?” Asuna asked incredulously.

 

 

“You read that?” Kirito asked.

 

 

“It was on my school reading list, I really didn’t have a choice,” Asuna snarked as the name [Lunar Shai’hulud] appeared above it. “Well, that answers _that question_ …” her eyes narrowed, “Were these in the [Beta]?”

 

 

“Yes, but they weren’t nearly that big,” Kirito deadpanned, “So, any crazy ideas for us to try, Asuna-hime?”

 

 

“Not yet,” she replied, “But give me a few minutes and one might pop up.”

 

 

Kirito tensed, “I wonder if they drop ingredients…”

 

 

“I’m not sure I want to know,” Asuna shot back.

 

 

Kirito nodded, “Any meat I pick up gets sold then,” he agreed easily.

 

 

Asuna gave him an easy smile. “Let’s see what it does first.”

 

 

The [Lunar Shai’hulud] opened the three parts of its mouth and roared, sending a shudder of dread down Kirito’s spine. “I don’t like that sound.”

 

 

“Not at all,” Asuna agreed, “But what can we do?”

 

 

“This was _Her_ home, so _she_ likely knows the best way to tackle this thing,” Kirito frowned, “Its hide is tough and it has a lot of HP, from what I remember of the [Beta]. I encountered this mob twice before the end.” He blushed, “It _ate_ me, the first time.”

 

 

Asuna nodded, trying not to laugh at the unintended double meaning, “I’ll make sure you don’t get eaten this time.” She looked up and up and up, “Do you know its weak spots?”

 

 

“The hinges of the mouth parts and the very end of the tail.” He replied.

 

 

Asuna’s eyes narrowed, “Well, it’s too dangerous to try attacking its mouth parts, we might get eaten, so the safest thing to do would be to target the tail…”

 

 

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Kirito asked with a curious little grin.

 

 

She smirked, “If crazy works…”

 

 

“Tell me the plan before you try anything please.” He prompted.

 

 

“Well, in order to get a clear shot at the tail, the mouth has to be occupied, right?” Asuna asked, taking a few steps back as the stare down continued, though how that worked she didn’t know, since Sandworms didn’t even _have_ eyes.

 

 

“Right,” Kirito agreed, “I think I see where you are going with this.”

 

 

“We need to distract the head somehow so that we can get at the tail,” she continued, “This is starting to look like the [Saber] situation all over again…”

 

 

“Indeed,” her partner agreed, “But while against the [Sabers]...”

 

 

“Kirito, don’t jinx it, one is enough for us,” Asuna said, keeping her eyes on the sandworm.

 

 

He sent her an exasperated look, “If you would let me finish, Hime?”

 

 

Asuna gave him a ‘get on with it’ gesture.

 

 

“As I was saying,” he rolled his eyes, “While with the [Sabers] your speed and accuracy was critical to winning, here, the slower player trying to distract the mob is a good way to end up dead because these things are really fast. So, a good idea would be for you to distract it, Asuna-hime, while I hack and slash at the tail, with Overkill, if need be.”

 

 

She could see the indecision in his eyes, “Kirito-kun?”

 

 

“I said there would be times where our roles would be reversed,” Kirito took a deep breath, “I just didn’t think it would be this soon.”

 

 

“You’re fast though…” her knuckles went white around her sword.

 

 

“But I’m not as fast as you are, Asuna-hime,” he grimaced, “And I don’t want to get eaten alive again. _Especially_ since that means that I would actually die this time.”

 

 

Asuna took a deep breath, “Ok, I’ll do it.”

 

 

“Ready?” Kirito asked.

 

 

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she replied.

 

 

* * *

 

Kayaba let his head fall to the top of his desk. “I knew that the other devs had been running out of ideas…”

 

 

Cardinal gave him a curious look from her station. “Master?”

 

 

“Cardinal, make a note,” he ordered. “Once we find the name of the Dev that put that thing in here, he or she will be the one dealing with any and all lawsuits that crop up.”

 

 

“...Yes Master,” Cardinal easily agreed.

 

 

* * *

 

The drop form the sandworm, “Were the devs _really_ running out of ideas this soon?” Asuna had asked, was actually the spices they’d been sent to find.

 

 

Safely tucked away in Kirito’s inventory, they made their way back to the capital to pick up either the Harp, or an insignificant reward and the next quest that the merchant might have for them.

 

 

The Market street was full of NPCs and Players, now that it was later in the day. Something strange happened though, as the NPCs caught sight of Kirito’s eye, they began to make way for him. It didn’t take as long for them to find the NPC’s stall as it otherwise would have because of this.

 

 

Pulling the box of spices out of his Inventory, Kirito looking at the Merchant, “Here are your spices sir, was there anything else you needed us to do?”

 

 

The NPC smiled, “Yes actually, I do.” he got up, motioning for Kirito and Asuna to follow him.

 

 

Carefully, Kirito and Asuna stepped over his wares, following him.

 

 

* * *

 

Sachi clutched her spear tightly, shivering in fear as she timidly followed her friends out of the [Starting City]. “You guys are sure this is a good idea?”

 

 

Keita turned to her, “There’s nothing else to do Sachi, I know you’re scared, but there’s nothing else to do.”

 

 

She nodded, “Alright.” She took a deep breath, doing her best to hide how scared she was, “Let’s go then.”

 

 

“Thanks Sachi, we _really_ didn’t want to leave you behind.” Keita gave her a bright smile.

 

 

* * *

 

Liz checked Orlando’s latest sword, “It’s not that bad I suppose…” she gave it a swing, “But the balance feels off.”

 

 

Orlando’s shoulder’s slumped, “I thought for sure that I’d gotten it right this time…”

 

 

“No, you have definitely gotten better,” Liz put the sword down, “It’s not as bad as it used to be.” She tried to balance the sword on her arm, “See here?”

 

 

Orlando leaned closer for a better look, “What am I looking at?”

 

 

“The balance point for the sword you just forged is just slightly too far forward, it’s top heavy.” Liz explained, picking up his [Anneal Blade] and balancing it on her other arm. “You see the difference?”

 

 

Orlando’s eyes widened, “Yeah, I see it.”

 

 

“Then melt down this blade a try again,” Liz smiled, turning to help Enkidou with the armor he was trying to forge.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito waited until they were in their room in the palace before opening his [Charm of Illusionary Book], “I still can’t believe how easy it was to get this thing,” he pulled the [Princess Harp] out.

 

 

“That belongs to _her_ , Kirito-kun,” Asuna flung open the balcony doors before turning back to him.

 

 

“I’m actually surprised that you didn’t try to snatch it out of my hands earlier.” He replied, placing the Harp on one of the tables. “It’s kind of cutesie, don’t you think?”

 

 

The [Princess Harp] as about the size of a normal harp, but made of a light pink, see through crystal, with room for something to be placed on top. And when he plucked one of the strings, it rang clearly and in tune.

 

 

Asuna sighed as she flopped onto their shared bed, pulling out one of the Rapier Manuals that had been lying around the room, from her Inventory. She opened it to where she’d placed the bookmark.

 

 

“Studying again?” Kirito asked, lying down next to her.

 

 

“There’s nothing else to do right now,” Asuna snarked, “And every manual is in Lunarian, I would suggest you open your own to study.”

 

 

“Alright, if that’s what you want to do before dinner,” he pulled himself up to sit against the headboard and pulled out the manual that he’d been studying from. He had no problem spending a quiet evening in for once, since they were normally quite busy.

 

 

On a normal day they’d still be out questing, but after being almost eaten by a sandworm, and then almost being ripped apart by a [Dire Wolf Pack], no, Kirito didn’t really feel like going out to grind either.

 

 

Kirito opened his manual to the place he marked and began reading where he’d left off a few days earlier.

 

 

* * *

 

Tilnel followed Heathcliff into Kirito’s room. He looked just as bad as her Princess did, not that she had expected him to look any different. Kizmel liked him so the younger elf had decided to give the boy a chance.

 

 

She couldn’t help but wonder what about him was so special though.

 

 

* * *

 

Suguha fell onto her bed with a soft ‘fwump’, giggling, “Ok, enough.” She pulled the AmuSphere’s box out of her bag, “It’s time I got started.” Finally, she would see why her brother loved that world so much.

 

 

Pulling out the cable first, she plugged it into the wall. Then she pulled out the visor and plugged the cable into the jack indicated in the instructions. Turning the VP Console on, she went through the process of the long, thorough, and frankly embarrassing calibration before she was ready to dive in. She made a note to ask Kou if the calibration needed some of the more embarrassing things, as it seemed a bit much to just play a game.

 

 

She lay down on her bed and took a deep breath, grinning in anticipation, “Link Start!” she called clearly, closing her eyes.

 

 

“WELCOME, NEW PLAYER, TO ALFHEIM ONLINE.” Suguha looked around, wondering briefly where the voice was coming from. “PLEASE CREATE AN ACCOUNT.”

 

 

Suguha grinned as the holographic keyboard appeared in front of her. She entered her e-mail account and her password, being sure to fill out only the areas that were necessary before pressing enter.

 

 

“PLEASE SELECT THE GENDER YOU WISH TO PLAY AS AND ENTER YOUR USER NAME.”

 

 

Suguha immediately chose female, having heard on _MMO Today_ that playing as the opposite gender could cause long term problems. Then she took a step back and crossed her arms over her chest. Frowning, she thought long and hard about what she wanted to call herself.

 

 

Finally deciding on her User Name, Suguha stepped back up to the holographic keyboard and began typing: ‘Leafa’.

 

 

Upon pressing enter, a model of her body appeared before her with the nine races to one side.

 

 

“PLEASE CHOOSE YOUR RACE AND CREATE THE AVATAR YOU WOULD LIKE TO USE.” The system announced.

 

 

Suguha took another deep breath and picked one race at random, almost squeaking in surprise when the coloring of her unedited avatar changed to match the Salamander she’d picked. Her short hair was now an almost shocking shade of red and her eyebrows had gone… funky. She decided that she did not like the look of herself as a Salamander.

 

 

While fire magic might be cool and allow her to burn things, she did not look good in that shade of red. So, Salamander was out then. “This is going to take a while,” she grumbled. “I can just tell.”

 

 

She shook her head at the Puka’s wings, though she did like the blonde hair. She didn’t look any different as a Spriggan, but she paused to think anyway, “My Hair is a bit different, but I don’t feel like looking even remotely the same,” she finally decided.

 

 

An hour later, she’d finally decided on her race: Sylph, which was what she’d been leaning towards playing anyway, and turned to customize her avatar. “I hadn’t realized that Character Creation could take this long.” she muttered as she played with hair length and color, going with blonde hair and a length much longer than her own. Then she went through the styles, choosing a high ponytail. She chose to have green eyes next and then finally stepped back after clothing her avatar in green.

 

 

“Looks good.” She nodded, checking the time, “I can’t believe I spent this much time just making Leafa…” she grumbled, “I’d better get a snack before continuing…”

 

 

* * *

 

Sugou frowned as he watched yet another beta tester spend more than an hour getting their avatar just right. His eyebrow began to tick as he made a note to himself to get rid of it somehow. At first he’d been ecstatic that he’d been chosen to oversee the completion of Alfheim Online. Now, after the umpteenth time of Character Creation, it was just getting tedious.

 

 

He’d grown to hate Kayaba over the time they’d been forced to work together. Kayaba always seemed to _trip_ over success whereas he had had to work his fingers to the bone for not even half of what Kayaba did. But now, with Alfheim he’d prove to the world that he was better than his rival. That he’d be using Kayaba’s own half finished game to do so… Well, there was something satisfying about that. The irony of doing a better job with the tools than their own creator just called to him.   


 


	21. Past Plights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remembering a life that is not your own... is not fun.

  
Kirito almost had to drag Asuna out of the Capital: Beḷḷi Kreseṇṭ two days later, since they were now so over leveled enough that the Mobs actually ran away when they approached, not to mention the fact that they weren’t even getting five points of experience per kill... “You want to stay because _she_ is homesick, there is no other reason.” He told her heatedly, “Now, you can shove _her_ to the back of your mind and ignore her for the rest of the floor or…” he took a deep breath, having thought long and hard about this ultimatum, and gave her a sad, almost heartbroken glare. “Or, I will be forced to leave you behind.”

 

 

Asuna’s eyes widened, “You wouldn’t…” she denied in terror, he’d been at her side since the first floor! He wouldn’t… _couldn’t_ leave her behind!

 

 

“I don’t _want_ to,” Kirito admitted, turning back to look at her, his eyes as hard as she’d ever seen them. “But we _need_ to keep going. Staying here threatens who you are Asuna. I’m surprised that you weren’t dragging me out of town sometime _yesterday_!”

 

 

Asuna bit her lip; everything he said was true, so why was she doing this to herself? “You’re right,” she took a deep breath. “Let’s get out of here before I lose my mind.” What had she been thinking?

 

 

* * *

 

Asuna let Kirito take charge of what they fought and where they went for the rest of the day as she tried to find herself again. It was proving to be much harder than she expected. “Kirito?”

 

 

Kirito turned to his partner, “Yes?”

 

 

“If, if I start trying to go back, smack me, I don’t care if you do it hard enough to deplete some HP.” She paused, thinking about it, “In fact, challenge me to a duel each time it happens, please?”

 

 

“I have not yet taught you how,” he pointed out. “If you are sure? The other [Beta Testers] told me that I can be quite terrifying during a duel.”

 

 

She smiled weakly and it suddenly struck him just how unlike her usual self she was acting. Even looked. This wasn’t the powerful and skilled fencer he’d been able to save by being in the right place at the perfect time.

 

 

His partner looked like the terrified teenager that they both were in reality, and he couldn’t deny the tears in her eyes or her terrified request. “If that’s what you want, Asuna-hime,” he finally agreed, “Then that’s what I’ll do. I’ll scare this out of you.”

 

 

Asuna sighed in relief, she’d been feeling the urge to go back rather strongly and she was having trouble quieting those memories. “...Do you think it will get easier?”

 

 

Kirito blinked leaning towards her to look more closely into her eyes, “Do I think what will be easier?”

 

 

Asuna ducked her head submissively in a way that was _completely_ unlike the confidant, sometimes brash and outspoken young woman he’d come to know so well, and looked up at him through her eyelashes and bangs. “...Will separating myself from _her_ get easier?” she looked at the ground, “I’ve heard your brother and the others referring to their own memories as other people. We do it too, but it doesn’t seem to be working…”

 

 

“I think that is simply because of the floor we’re on,” Kirito replied, wrapping a comforting arm around her shoulders.

 

 

* * *

 

Kouichirou frowned as he watched his sister struggling with herself, this… wasn’t like her at all. Even before she’d gotten trapped in the game. He took his attention off his computer and looked to where his sister was lying motionless on her hospital bed. “You are better than this Asuna; you can’t let this beat you.”

 

 

But he knew that there was nothing he could do about his adorable little sister’s plight, and it would likely be resolved long before Sword Art Online was beaten. He’d been sitting here so long, perhaps it was time he took up Sugu’s offer to go with her to visit her older brother.

 

 

* * *

 

Suguha yelped indignantly as she landed on her face again. She pushed herself up with a sigh and rubbed her very numb nose in irritation, “How long is this going to take?” she wondered, looking up into the starry sky. “...I think I understand now.” She sighed, “While I still don’t feel quite right, I feel like I fit into my skin better than Outside…”

 

 

And wasn’t that amusing, she’d picked up the term from her brother after watching him chatting with Asuna about the lives they’d left behind and hoped to return to. Turning her attention back to the present, Suguha glared at the [Flight Controller] she still had a death grip on. _What am I doing wrong?_ She thought. _I can get that flying can take some getting used to, but there has to be an easier way than this._

 

 

She relaxed her hand and let the controller disappear and then thought about what she was doing. Using the controller was fairly simple, but once you tried to start getting fancy with the flying, it became far less useful. ...Maybe there was a way to fly without the damned thing? If there was, then…

 

 

She thought back to her attempts at flying. She could feel something in her back, as if muscles that wouldn’t be there were stretching themselves. Using the controller could be a useful teaching tool, but it also didn’t _feel_ right.

 

 

...What if she…? Suguha’s eyes narrowed as she concentrated, trying to flex those muscles she felt that weren’t there. But as hard as she tried, it didn’t work. Snarling, she sent one of the [Game Masters] a PM.

 

 

It was obvious that she would not get to meet up with Kou while in game today; perhaps she should take a break. She hadn’t been by to see her older brother in a while, so maybe she should visit him.

 

 

Or maybe she could make a pest of herself for her older cousin Aki. Maybe she could bully him into telling her how to pop her wings without the [Flight Controller]. If anyone would know, it would be him, surely. Opening her menu, Suguha logged out.

 

 

Pulling the AmuSphere off her head, she sat up, Taking a moment to decide what to do, Suguha nodded before getting up. Changing, she left her room to inform her mother where she was going.

 

 

* * *

 

Taking her pass, Suguha asked after her older cousin and was rather happy to learn that he wasn’t in game yet. If she was swift enough, she’d be able to bug her cousin and then she’d see Kazu for a bit before maybe going back home to play some more of ALO, to see if the problem had been fixed, or she could go visit Kouichirou and Asuna, as had become habit twice to three times a week.

 

 

She was sure that her mother would be angry that she wasn’t spending time with her brother and cousin if Midori knew what her daughter was getting up to, but Suguha felt that her time was better spent where she could actually see how her brother was doing.

 

 

...And then there was the fact that she felt that the less time she spent with Kayaba Akihiko right now the better. She was still quite angry with him. How could he have abandoned Kazu like that? Not to mention the fact that she could have had _two_ older brothers to adore instead of just one.

 

 

How could he have just tossed them aside like that? She stewed in her anger as she waited for the elevator to take her to the correct floor. Her cousin didn’t know she was coming, and that was just how she liked it. It would serve him right for ignoring their family.

 

 

* * *

 

Kayaba looked up from his discussion with Pluto and Venus when the door banged open, “Excuse me ladies, but I have to deal with my annoying little cousin for a bit.” He stood from his chair, “I’ll be right back.”

 

 

Pluto gave him a knowing smirk, “Take your time, Captain.” She reassured the man, “Lady Venus and I will still be here when you are finished.”

 

 

Akihiko sent her an annoyed glare as he picked Suguha up by the back of her collar and left the room, heading for his brother’s room instead.

 

 

“Put me down!” Suguha demanded.

 

 

“In a moment,” he replied, dropping her a tad roughly into one of the chairs at his brother’s bedside after closing the door. “Now,” he sighed, probably more grateful for her interruption than she’d ever realize, “What did you need, Suguha?”

 

 

Suguha sent him a glare that was more of a pout, reminding him of the tiny kitten he and Kazu had found and taken home before the accident. He couldn’t believe how old Ēkate was.

 

 

“Flying in ALO feels,” Suguha paused, not sure how he’d take her complaint. “ _Wrong_ using the [Flight Controller]... Aki.”

 

 

“Then you don’t need it?” Aki asked curiously, he had been half expecting this actually. “Flying without the [Controller] is called [Voluntary Flight].”

 

 

“[Voluntary Flight]?”

 

 

Kayaba thought for a few moments before nodding, “Alright, get up Sugu.”

 

 

“You don’t get to call me that,” she muttered unhappily as she stood up from the chair.

 

 

Kayaba chuckled as he drudged up the memory of Heathcliff learning to fly without aid. He placed his hand on his younger cousin’s back, “You remember what your wings felt like?”

 

 

Suguha blinked in confusion, “Yeah, so?”

 

 

“You need to focus on the feeling of the virtual bones and muscles that you would need to make the wings work to your will,” he began. “Then you will need to move them as if you are moving actual wings. ALO doesn’t move the wings to fly, but being able to control their movement will be necessary to control the flight. The main purpose is to make sure you have the feel of them down. Once you are confident that you have the feel of your wings and the control of them, it is as simple as having them out. The system should take care of the rest.”

 

 

“...Why do I have the feeling that ALO is another simulator?” she grumbled, “Thank you Aki.”

 

 

“There’s nothing to it Sugu, if you keep having trouble, stop by again.” Her adult cousin gave her shoulder a squeeze and a gentle smile, “If it makes you feel better, Kazu reacted the same way.”

 

 

“It doesn’t,” she ground out, pulling away from him.

 

 

Kayaba just laughed as she left the room, Sighing, he seated himself in the chair she’d vacated, “At this rate Kazu, I don’t think we’ll ever get to play together again…” he put a hand on the younger boy’s chest, “Maybe I should have Rinko bring Ēkate with her the next time she visits. You loved that cat...”

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito stretched as he led Asuna into _Candra Utsava_ , the town closest to the labyrinth. He was starting to have a bit of trouble with the language of the game so he’d looked through the third beginner’s [Primer]; he hadn’t actually needed to read it. And, with that in mind, he’d bought the first of the [Advanced Primers] since he knew he wouldn’t be able to coast as he had been doing.

 

 

Now that he thought of it though, Kirito was sure that his brother hadn’t spoken a word of Japanese to him when he’d been helping his parents teach him to speak. Maybe that was why he was picking up Lunarian so fast. He was even starting to remember all the word games they’d played.

 

 

Mouthing one such pattern under his breath, Kirito noticed his partner looking back towards where he knew Beḷḷi Kreseṇṭ was and sighed. He had hoped that he wouldn’t need to duel her, terrifying his partner, but it looked like he might have to. “Not planning to go back I hope.” his voice a bit on the cold side.

 

 

“No,” she struggled to reply, “This floor is driving me crazy.”

 

 

“That’s why I’ve been pushing you,” he replied, pulling her close.

 

 

“I almost wish I’d stayed on the ninth floor.” She leaned into him, grimacing, “But then I’d be terrified that you wouldn’t come back to me…” her arms snaked around his middle and he was suddenly very aware of how tightly she was holding onto him.

 

 

Kirito sighed, “We need to keep the momentum going.”

 

 

“I know,” she let herself sag against her partner; “I don’t know how much help I’ll be.”

 

 

“Asuna is Asuna,” Kirito whispered warmly in her ear, “And I’ll repeat it as many times as you need me to, until it sinks in.”

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito had been tapping his fingers against the stone seat for a while now. Kibaou and Lind had been arguing for a good ten minutes already. “Must they do this _every single time_?” he asked his partner irritably.

 

 

“I don’t know why they’re arguing,” Asuna agreed, her eyes closed, the constant mental battle she’d been having was wearing her down quite a bit and she was tired of everything because of it.

 

 

When it degenerated to name calling, Kirito stood up, his dark eyes blazing.

 

 

Asuna blinked, “Kirito-kun?”

 

 

“I’ve had enough, this is ridiculous.” he growled, silently making his way to the stairs.

 

 

Agil caught sight of him and made to follow, but Asuna stopped him with a shake of her head as she got up to follow him herself. Perhaps a distraction would help with her headache.

 

 

“That’s enough, both of you,” He said firmly as he walked up. “The two of you are acting like children, and it’s clear that neither of you are paying attention to how that makes both of you look.” Both of them gave him disgruntled looks, only to be stared down by him.

 

 

Not once had he raised his voice, unnerving both Lind and Kibaou.

 

 

“Now, go sit yourselves down.” Kirito ordered, “ _Now_.”

 

 

Kibaou reared up to give an indignant reply, but the look in Kirito’s eyes stopped him before he could even open his mouth. Kirito’s eyes narrowed, sending Kibaou and Lind scurrying to sit with their guilds, their heads down.

 

 

There was just a slight upturning of Kirito’s lips to show his amusement.

 

 

* * *

 

Asuna carefully kept herself from smirking as Kirito shut both Lind and Kibaou down without any effort. When was the last time anyone had been able to do that _without_ raising his voice? Was this really the boy she’d met on the first floor almost three months ago?

 

 

Yes, yes he was. She had seen the seeds of the man he was growing into becoming there, but it would take time. Much like it would take time for her to reconcile the memories of her past life. Which would be easier if they would. Just. Stop. Intruding. Things like how to handle the mobs, even coming up with plans based off those memories were good and all, but she wanted to be sure that the ideas she kept coming up with were her own, not the memories of a girl long dead and who should remain in the past where she belongs, damn it!

 

 

Not that she wouldn’t make use of those experiences, as they did help with increasing her and everyone else’s chances of survival.

 

 

Still, seeing Kirito step forward and take charge like this was nice. For all that he’d been called [Commander], he was uncomfortable with the position and the title, but it was times like this which showed that he was the right person for the job. So she sat and watched, listening in as he got information from those who had found and scouted the boss before retreating, details like the shape of the boss room, attack patterns, whether there were adds, things like that. Once he had that information, he then started outlining a plan.

 

 

* * *

 

Cardinal smiled as she watched the meeting, recording it so that her Master might be able to share this moment. She was just sorry that he wasn’t in game to witness it himself.

 

 

“Master will be proud of him once he sees this,” she mused, keeping an eye on the feed while she got back to debugging the [Unique Skills].

 

 

While Kirito being her Master’s younger brother might cause some in the army to doubt the boy’s capability, the AI was sure that Kirito would be able to put down any claims of favoritism on his own. That just made hiding that one single fact that much more important.

 

 

Cardinal was sure that many would not believe that her master hadn’t known they were brothers when he’d made his choice. She’d have to start planning contingencies...

 

 

* * *

 

Kouichirou made sure that he was recording the meeting before allowing his smile to almost split his face, “Well, look at you [Leader].” He shook his head as he noted his sister’s proud smile, “These two, seriously. How can they be this cute?”

 

 

He’d have to show Sugu this footage. She was sure to get a kick out of this.

 

 

* * *

 

Suguha carefully looked over her shoulder, “Ok, Aki said something about invisible bones and muscles, so, let’s try it…” She started trying to twitch the muscles in her back, looking for the ones that would be connected to her wings. Her eyes lit up as her wings ‘popped’.

 

 

She launched herself into the air, laughing joyously the whole time. She wasn’t even disappointed when she was forced to land because she needed to rest. Flying under your own power was so… _wonderful_. It felt like she’s found that thing she’d been missing her whole life, like how her older brother was always raving about when he got onto the subject of [Sword Art Online]...

 

 

* * *

 

One of Kayaba’s eyebrows rose when he saw Cardinal giggling, “Something amusing? Cardinal-chan?”

 

 

Cardinal gave him a toothy grin, “You might want to watch this Master,” she opened the recording she’d made that morning. “I’m sending a copy to your phone, but you really should watch this first.”

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito sighed in relief when the huge _Monster Samurai_ died. “We did it.”

 

 

Asuna nodded, “Did we lose anyone this time?”

 

 

Kirito opened his [Charm of Illusionary Book], bringing up his map. “No, we still have a full Team, Asuna-hime. Shall we climb the stairs?”

 

 

“Yeah, anything to get away from this damned floor and the memories it induces…” she agreed.

 

 

He took her hand and pulled her up the stairs, pretending to ignore all the comments the rest of the Raid Team were making.   


 


	22. Mirrors, Weapons and Quests

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am using Kannada as Lunarian. Obviously I am not going to be actually writing in it. As such, the names of towns will be in that language.
> 
> Cuccumaddu has several translation but what I used to get it was Quick Silver, which is another name for the only metal that is in liquid form at room temperature: Mercury.
> 
> If I have someone speaking in Lunarian then I will indicate that they have switched languages somehow.

  
  
Taft was the largest and the main settlement on the eleventh floor, which Asuna recognized as being from Mercury. Taft was obviously, to the girl in Asuna’s memories, based off of the capital of said planet: Cuccumaddu.  
  
  
  
“I have a feeling that some of these next floors are going to be harder to deal with than others,” Kirito muttered as he paid for a room for them to share.  
  
  
  
“Well, at least we can hope that it will never get as bad as floor ten,” Asuna agreed weakly.  
  
  
  
“Why don’t we just agree to not ever go down there again?” Kirito suggested, “Sure we have a room in the palace all to ourselves… But is it really worth it if I have to drag you out of town every time we go?”  
  
  
  
“It’s not,” Asuna agreed, “As much as _she_ wants to go back, _I_ want to continue onward and upward.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded. He knew that Asuna was trying to keep a clear separation between herself and the Princess, and if it means that she has to convince herself that it’s just her past life desiring a certain course of action, then he wouldn’t say anything. Anything to keep her moving, since part of him was sure that she would fall back into that attitude she’d had when they’d first met. He really didn’t want that to happen to his _friend_.  
  
  
  
He would support her in most things. But as he’d made clear the week before, he was not going to stop climbing. He’d promised to stay as long as she would let him, but the moment her momentum stopped; he’d keep pushing. He’d make sure that she’d be safe wherever it was she stopped. But as he was the [Commander] of this army, he would be doing everyone else a disservice if he did the same.  
  
  
  
He would take his new responsibilities seriously, even if he didn’t particularly want them. In order, Asuna was the ultimate authority, because she was the Princess he was meant to serve. Next was Heathcliff, his older brother, because his brother was the one training them all. But in the end, he was the one that would be making all the decisions and Kirito wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He wasn’t the most outgoing of people after all and if he had to choose, more often than not he would rather curl up with a book or do something on his computer. Though after so long traveling with Asuna; he couldn’t see her _not_ there to keep him company.  
  
  
  
That didn’t mean that he’d choose to spend time with other people more. And Kirito really wasn’t sure _how_ he’d ended up with the friends he now had. Beryl, Persephone, Klein and his guild, Agil, Lux, Argo… how had he ended up with so many actual friends?  
  
  
  
He could think on all that later. Turning his attention back to paying the NPC, he covered a yawn, “Shall we head up and get some sleep then?”  
  
  
  
Asuna chuckled, “Sure.” She paused at the top of the stairs, “Did we ever have dinner?”  
  
  
  
Kirito looked back at her, giving the question some thought, “You know, I don’t think we did. How about we eat in our room before we do anything else.” his eyes focused on hers, “You did pack something this morning, right?”  
  
  
  
“I did,” she opened her [Charm of Illusionary Book] as she approached him. “There should be something left in here.”  
  
  
  
Kirito gave her a playful smirk, “That’s _my Asuna_.”  
  
  
  
She blushed lightly, “As if I would let my [Black Sun] starve,” she teased, grinning widely.  
  
  
  
“And you spoil me, _Princess_ ,” he replied his grin matching hers.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
That night, Kirito couldn’t sleep; so instead, he was working on his self-assigned project. Every once in a while, he’d look down at his partner’s sleeping face and smile. He’d known her three months. And yet… he still couldn’t define what he felt. He was extremely hesitant to assign the ‘L’ word.  
  
  
  
Yes, his feelings were intense but they couldn’t be _that_ intense. His confusion was only made worse by the fact that he didn’t have any friends he knew well enough to ask advice from. Klein would tease the hell out of him as would Klein’s guild; he just didn’t _know_ Agil well enough. And the rest of the acquaintances/friends he’d made were _girls_. There was his older brother of course, but he was still too angry with the man to take anything Heathcliff said objectively.  
  
  
  
And then there was the fact that he was fourteen. “...Puberty _sucks_ …” he grumbled with a sigh. He was just glad that his voice hadn’t cracked in public… _yet_ … _I wish I knew what to do..._ Kirito sighed, wishing he had an answer to his dilemma.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Princess Mercury was… Asuna wasn’t sure how to describe the NPC. Creepy didn’t quite fit, but no other words even got close. It was a rare agreement between her and _her_ memories, that the resemblance was there, but it wasn’t quite right. Like a picture that was somewhat distorted due to age and being looked at through old glass. That didn’t mean that the Princess was unhappy to “see” a familiar face, though.  
  
  
  
“...the Academy has always been the pride of House Mercury,” the NPC was saying, and Asuna tried her best to ignore the feelings she was getting from the princess in the back of her head. It. Wasn’t. Helpful. “And I’m proud to say that there are Satellite Campuses set up around the whole Empire.”  
  
  
  
She saw Kirito nod as she got a notice that said that they could now visit the [Royal Academy]. Asuna was sure that checking the place out would be beneficial to their training. But at the same time, she didn’t want to deal with the hassle, or the memories and headaches it would cause her.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Meeting Princess Mercury was just _creepy_.” Asuna muttered as she pulled Kirito into the [Royal Academy].  
  
  
  
“Yeah, there was something… off about her. But at least now we have this place. Who knows what kind of useful things will be here.” he gave her a tiny grin.  
  
  
  
“I’m not sure I want to,” she confided.  
  
  
  
“Oh?” Kirito asked, leaning close, “Memory Headache?”  
  
  
  
“Something like that,” Asuna agreed. “And it won’t go away.”  
  
  
  
“I suppose we should see my brother about that,” Kirito suggested unhappily.  
  
  
  
“Aren’t you happy to have him back?”  
  
  
  
He made a trembling fist, “What I feel right now has nothing to do with that. While I am content to know that, that…” he took a deep breath, “I am still deeply pissed off that he didn’t even _try_ to find out what had happened to me!” Kirito snarled, punching one of the walls as hard as he could (getting a purple polygon and numb hand for his trouble), causing Asuna to jump in surprise.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s mouth twisted at how broken he seemed. “I thought we were past this, Kirito-kun.”  
  
  
  
“I’m afraid that it’s going to be ongoing for a while.” He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close, “But I promise to, to not let it affect how I interact with him in future.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna growled as she sharpened her Rapier, “We’ll have to replace our swords really soon.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, “We’ll melt them down again,” he agreed. “Shall we have Liz do it?”  
  
  
  
“That is a good idea.” Asuna replied as she checked her Rapier’s sharpness. “She’s succeeded at everything we’ve had her do so far.” She got up, sheathing it, “We should do it before they run out of durability.”  
  
  
  
“Mmm,” Kirito agreed silently as she walked up to him and took his hand. He threaded his fingers with hers, interlocking them. “Let’s see if we can find Liz and her [Braves] then.”  
  
  
  
“They should be arriving soon,” Asuna agreed, “That last Harp quest was annoying.”  
  
  
  
“I wonder what the [Princess Harp] even does…” That was the first [Princess Item] that Asuna was allowing him to hold onto for her.  
  
  
  
“At this point I don’t even really care.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Liz looked up when she heard Asuna call to her. “Morning Asuna, what can I do for you?”  
  
  
  
“Good morning Liz,” Asuna beamed, “Kirito and I need you to melt our swords down into ingots please.”  
  
  
  
Liz blinked, “But these are really good swords, why would you want to?”  
  
  
  
“They are obsolete now, Liz,” Kirito explained, “I’m actually surprised that they haven’t broken yet. Both these swords were crafted after forty hits with a [Blacksmith Hammer].”  
  
  
  
“Well, I’ll certainly do my best…” Liz agreed, picking up Kirito’s [Dark Sun] to work on first. She placed the sword into her forge to melt down, “While that’s happening, why don’t you decide the type of sword you want me to forge the new ingot into?”  
  
  
  
Kirito smiled as the Smithing Menu finally opened, “Sure Liz.” He turned to Asuna, “Why don’t you browse while I do this.”  
  
  
  
“It’s not going to take you long,” Asuna pointed out.  
  
  
  
He shrugged, “Maybe not, but it’ll give you something to do to take your mind off your headache.”  
  
  
  
She bit her lip before agreeing. She turned her attention to the rapiers and long swords on display.  
  
  
  
“Oh yes, Asuna.”  
  
  
  
Asuna turned her attention back to her partner, “Yes, Kirito-kun?”  
  
  
  
“You should pick out a secondary weapon, for just in case.” He hadn’t taken his eyes off Liz once.  
  
  
  
She blinked, “...What’s yours?” Asuna asked after taking a moment to think about it.  
  
  
  
“I have both [Blade Throwing] and [Martial Arts] at the moment.” He replied, finally taking his eyes off Liz as she took the [Ingot] out of her [Portable Forge]. “I know you have [Martial Arts] too, but you should pick another Weapon’s Skill. When you get your next [Skill Slot] you can either fill it with [Acrobatics] which you have in that [Crystal Bottle of Kales’Oh] you go on the third floor from that [Forest Elf] and put your secondary Weapon Skill in that item, or you can put your chosen Weapon Skill in the slot and leave [Acrobatics] where it is.”  
  
  
  
“...Will you help me find a secondary weapon then?” Asuna requested shyly.  
  
  
  
“Sure.” He turned back to the menu and went through his choices, “There we go Liz, good luck. And remember:”  
  
  
  
“The more hits the Ingot needs the higher quality the sword and the more [Upgrade Slots] it will have.” Liz parroted as he spoke, taking Kirito’s mats and materials. “Yes I know, Nezha said something like that too.” She put them in the forge with the new [Ingot], “How many hits did [Dark Sun] and [Chivalric Rapier] take?”  
  
  
  
“Forty each.” Kirito replied, eying his partner curiously as he pondered which weapons he should recommend that she try.  
  
  
  
Liz whistled, “And you got them both on the third floor? I thought that didn’t happen.”  
  
  
  
“We got them off a grumpy [Dark Elven Blacksmith],” Kirito replied.  
  
  
  
Asuna blushed as she felt his gaze, “Kirito-kun, you aren’t making bedroom eyes at me on purpose are you?” she half teased.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s cheeks went bright red, “I’m not doing that!” he protested, “I was trying to figure out what the best weapons to recommend were…” his eyes narrowed and he gave her a playful smirk, “That is, unless you _wanted_ me to look at you that way?”  
  
  
  
“You tease!” Asuna accused, her cheeks bright red from embarrassment.  
  
  
  
“As if you aren’t just as bad,” Kirito shot back playfully, his smirk widening slightly.  
  
  
  
Liz watched them both with an amused grin, “If you two are done flirting?” she pulled the red hot [Ingot] off the forge and began hitting it, setting a rhythm of hitting the her [Portable Anvil] every third hit she put to the [Ingot]. She shot passed forty hits, then passed fifty. In fact she hit the [Ingot] eighty times before the system took over. Liz sighed from the exertion, wiping some imaginary sweat from her forehead and picked up the [One-Handed Long Sword], “This sword is called [Shadow Eclipse]. It should work quite well for you, Kirito.”  
  
  
  
Kirito took his new sword from her and gave it a swing. “Perfect, thanks Liz.”  
  
  
  
Liz blushed as Asuna handed over her own sword to be melted down. “While I do this, take a look at the other stuff I’ve got.”  
  
  
  
Kirito picked up a mace and tossed it to his partner who caught it, gave it a swing and then shook her head, “Feels wrong.”  
  
  
  
“Ok, not that then,” Kirito agreed as he picked up a dagger. He handed it to Asuna over his shoulder as she put the mace down.  
  
  
  
She frowned, “Too short, not enough reach.”  
  
  
  
“Something longer then,” Kirito looked pensive for a moment, “Try [Shadow Eclipse] while I see if I can find anything else here.” He pulled his sword from over his shoulder.  
  
  
  
Asuna took the sword, “It’s a bit heavy for my liking and the fit is better, but it’s still not perfect.” She sheathed his sword and gave it back.  
  
  
  
Kirito slung his sword back over his shoulder, holding out a spear, “Try this then, I don’t think weapons made for just cutting will work for you. A spear is more of a thrusting weapon, and you can practice with Beryl or myself, since a spear is just a staff with a blade on the end. Technically anyway.”  
  
  
  
“And you tried everything you could get your hands on?” she asked.  
  
  
  
“Yes,” he gave her a smile as he herded her back to Liz so that she could build her new rapier.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito pulled his partner out into the field an hour later. “Now then, I’m going to give you a lesson on how to use your emergency weapon.”  
  
  
  
“Is this at all like Dueling?” Asuna asked.  
  
  
  
Kirito shook his head, “I did this with Klein on the first day, and I’ll help him again once he gets the Katana that he wants.” He activated his [Spell of Illusionary Book] and pulled out the extra Spear he’d bought. Asuna had already bought one, but it was always good to have a spare, he’d be giving her this one after the lesson was over.  
  
  
  
“Oh good, then you aren’t going to scare me.” she teased.  
  
  
  
“Not if you don’t want me to…” Kirito gave her a smirk. “Now, the spear is like a Quarterstaff, it’s handled similarly but for the pointy end here.” He tapped the base of the spearhead. “This allows you a greater reach than your rapier would give you so that you can stay out of range while still being able to do a mob damage with thrusts...”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
This time, Asuna was the one to notice the Item, “Kirito-kun, do you think this is a [Quest Reward]?” she asked, pointing to the silver mirror on one of the walls of [The Academy].  
  
  
  
Kirito frowned as he gave it a look, “Why do you say that? Is it another feeling like with the [Rainbow Crystals]?”  
  
  
  
“... _She_ sat up and took notice the moment I saw it.” Asuna admitted.  
  
  
  
“Ah, something to do with the past then.” Kirito crossed his arms, “We never made it up here so anything I tell you is speculation at best, but I’d say my brother is up to something.”  
  
  
  
“Like what?” Asuna gave him a confused look.  
  
  
  
“Well, the [Rainbow Crystals] are pieces of the [Silver Crystal] which according to some of the books I’ve read is a Royal Family Heirloom and a magical Foci, so _she_ would have gotten training in how to use it if she needed to in an emergency.” He mused, “The music box, from your reaction, was something she was given, possibly by her then fiancé Endymion. I’m not entirely sure about the Harp though, she could have been a fan of music and learned as a hobby?”  
  
  
  
“Maybe?” she agreed.  
  
  
  
He tapped the mirror, “[Silver Dream Mirror]... hm.”  
  
  
  
Asuna looked over his shoulder to read the flavor text. “This is mine, somehow.”  
  
  
  
“I got that feeling too,” Kirito turned his head to look over his shoulder at her. “So then, any ideas on how to obtain this thing?”  
  
  
  
Asuna looked back up at the mirror, “I’ll think of something. I just hope Princess Mercury is not involved.”  
  
  
  
“I take it the [Princess of Old] knew her?” he poked her shoulder gently as she led him deeper into the library.  
  
  
  
“Something like that,” Asuna shrugged. “They were good friends from what I can gleam from her memories.”  
  
  
  
“That just gives us another reason to avoid her, lest something like what happened [Downstairs] happen again.” Kirito pulled her close as she found the room she was looking for. “What are we looking for in here?”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Persephone grimaced as she looked around at the cave entrance, “I’m glad Argo was able to finally find this place. I’m not sure how I feel about having to do it on my own though…” Hopefully the Mobs wouldn’t out level her too badly.  
  
  
  
Taking a deep breath, the dormant Senshi of Saturn entered the [Crystal Cave].  
  
  
  
“Beware all who enter, for only one may have the reward at the end.” a voice echoed from above.  
  
  
  
Persephone looked up at the ceiling, “Well,” she muttered sarcastically, “That explains just about everything.”  
  
  
  
“There will be no turning back and only potions may be used.”  
  
  
  
“Great,” she grumbled. “Perhaps this is a test of my resolve.” She thought she’d be able to handle it. Persephone twirled her Naginata with more confidence than she really felt. She couldn’t go back and she refused to quit. “I will do anything I need to, to keep my friends safe!” she declared.  
  
  
  
A crystalline wolf jumped her from the shadows and Persephone put her Naginata through its head, her eyes cooling as she took another step.  
  
  
  
The next mob to approach her acted differently. It was a huge skeletal horse made of crystals, her head only coming up to its shoulders. It sniffed at her hair and she got an uncomfortably good look at those carnivorous teeth in its mouth.  
  
  
  
It nudged her hands and then at her pockets.  
  
  
  
Not really understanding what was going on, Persephone pulled out some of the jerky she’d picked up for a snack. The horse (she was pretty sure it was a Thestral), took the offered treat happily and she sighed, pressing the [Yes] button. “I think I’ll call you Hades.” she chuckled as his tail swished and wings flapped happily. “I’ve still got this quest to finish, we should continue.”


	23. Questing and Saving Lives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Questing is tiring and very frustrating, but also very rewarding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Śānti means Tranquility

Persephone slid down Hades’ side as she came to what seemed to be a miniboss area. It was empty. “Well Hades, there’s nothing here, but I bet the moment we enter the cavern something will appear.”  
  
  
  
Hades shook out his mane, chuffing. He started pushing his Master forward, causing her to squeak.  
  
  
  
“I’m going, I’m going,” Persephone rolled her eyes as she took the final step into the cavern herself. She grabbed Hades’ mane and pulled him with her as an enraged roar filled the area, the sound bouncing off the walls making it sound so much louder. The BGM, which had been kind of soothing before picked up slightly. In the center of the cavern as she had predicted, there was a large mob that looked halfway between a Cerberus and a dragon, with three large heads at the end of three long necks.  
  
  
  
One head was almost snakelike, the one in the middle looked like a dragon’s head and the last looked like a mix of the first two. And the beast was made of crystal. “Snakes,” Persephone irritably sighed, “Why did it have to be snakes?”  
  
  
  
She changed the grip she had on her Naginata and took a deep breath. She needed to finish this quest before she would be able to get back to her friends, so that she could protect them all. “Hades,” she breathed, her knees bent, muscles coiling like springs. “Let’s go!”  
  
  
  
Persephone lunged at what she thought was half dragon half snake. Her new pet galloping behind her. Her eyes narrowed as she blocked one of its clawed hands, arresting its momentum. Hades took the chance to take a bite out of the [Crystalline Hydraigon’s] side.  
  
  
  
She twirled her Naginata and went for one of its three heads. Her jump bringing her neatly over the thrashing of the second head and a swipe of the long, serpentine tail. “You are standing in the way of my obtaining a skill that will allow me to keep my new friends safe.” She snarled angrily, “ _Get out of my way!_ ”  
  
  
  
She twirled, the razor edge of her glaive slicing easily through the neck at the base of the skull of the third head. Persephone flipped, ascending high into the air over the snakelike head and away from the mob’s body. She landed on Hades’s shoulders, out of the Event Boss’ range.  
  
  
  
It had two HP Bars. and her attack had taken maybe ten percent from the first one, not counting Hades’ attacks.  
  
  
  
A movement caught her attention and Persephone groaned, “Don’t tell me…” Before her eyes, the severed neck split in two and both grew heads. “Fuck me…” She sighed in misery, her mood worsening. What was a Hydra’s weakness again? She knew this. It was fire, right? Right.  
  
  
  
Muttering a few very choice words in Lunarian, she eyed the chamber, “Nope, my luck is _not_ that good.” There were no sticks on the ground for her to turn into a torch. She _hated_ Castle Aincrad when it did this to her!  
  
  
  
...Where had that thought come from? Persephone shook her head to clear it. She could worry about random thoughts like that later, _after_ she’d killed this thing. She settled herself to sitting on Hades’ back. “I suppose we have to do this the hard way then!” she changed her grip on [Saturn’s Glaive] and nudged Hades’ sides with her heels, “Charge!”  
  
  
  
Hades needed no further encouragement and Persephone almost fell off of his back as he surged forward with more speed and power than she’d anticipated. She put her Naginata through a different head this time while Hades bit into the neck, tearing pieces of flesh asunder.  
  
  
  
And that was how Persephone fought for the next half hour. Her hit and run tactics worked for the most part and even though there were now ten heads to keep an eye on, she’d been able to whittle the Boss’ HP down to the red of the second bar.  
  
  
  
She was quite tired by then but she couldn’t stop. “How am I going to keep track of all those damned heads?” she hissed, panting. Surely, Herakles must have been feeling her same frustration when he’d been dealing with the task of killing the Hydra in that ancient myth.  
  
  
  
Hades snorted, tossing his head before running forward again.  
  
  
  
“Hades, what are you doing?” Persephone shrieked, holding onto her mount’s mane tightly.  
  
  
  
Then, Hades did something that she was pretty sure a normal Thestral couldn’t do. He opened his mouth and blew a small pillar of deep, hot blue flames at the Hydra. Persephone could only blink in confusion as the Boss shattered. “...Thestrals can’t breathe fire…” Just what was her new pet then? She had to wonder as a pop up appeared, telling her that she had completed the quest and could now create [Healing Crystals].  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Yuuna grimaced as she struggled to finish the first of the three [Basic Primers]. Why did she keep stumbling over this one sound? It made no sense whatsoever! She sighed, putting the book down, “Learning this language is a lot harder than I thought it would be…”  
  
  
  
Perhaps she should instead go out and kill some mobs to vent her frustration? The very thought of leaving the [Safe Zone] caused her to freeze, whimpering. “I hate being stuck here, this was _supposed to be fun_!” the rising Idol moaned. “I know that Life isn’t fair, but does it have to be this unfair?” Yuuna pouted, glaring down at the book she was maybe a quarter of the way through.  
  
  
  
And to think, there were still two more [Primers] for her to go through after finishing this one. It was almost too much trouble, especially for the first MMO for the platform. And that was all _before_ she had to start shelling out Col for more...  
  
  
  
Sighing in defeat, Yuuna put the book back into her Inventory and equipped her mace, shield and armor. Perhaps it was time to make her way to Harunka village, where the mobs were a few levels higher. She’d better let Thinker know she was leaving. At level five she was still quite squishy. Perhaps she should put more of her points into her Defense stat when she reached level six.  
  
  
  
Come to think of it, had she ever checked her stats? With that in mind, Yuuna opened her menu and turned to her [Status Screen]. She groaned at what she saw a moment later, “ _That_ explains it…” She’d completely forgotten about allocating her points! “No wonder I’ve been having so much trouble…” she grumbled as she placed several points to her defense stat, strength and agility. “I can’t believe I forgot about the points we get from gaining levels!” What a newb mistake!  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Argo frowned as she browsed her notes. Something about this game didn’t make sense. But how was she supposed to find out what that was? She was sure it had something to do with Kirito’s quest…  
  
  
  
That was the reason that she was back on the first floor. She was determined to find anything and everything that could have been overlooked. As she found new things, she updated her guidebook. Kirito was right, and since she was the one making the guidebooks, it was her responsibility to make sure all her information was as accurate as possible.  
  
  
  
_Never again_ was she going to make the mistake that they’d all made before that first boss fight. Illfang had been a very _unpleasant_ surprise. Well, she’d explored all of the first floor, finally. She’d have to edit the guides appropriately and then she needed to get to the latest Floor and report to Kirito.  
  
  
  
It didn’t take her very long to get back to the [Town of Beginnings] and the [Teleport Pad]. “Teleport: Taft!” Argo called, disappearing from the first floor.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Persephone covered a yawn as she finally emerged from that dratted cave on the ninth floor. “I still can’t believe I beat that thing on my own,” she muttered rubbing at one of her eyes tiredly. She laughed when Hades whickered under her. “I can’t wait to see Kirito’s face when he sees you.”  
  
  
  
Hades snorted as if to agree.  
  
  
  
Persephone stretched, settling herself more firmly onto her pet’s back, “Take me back to the city, Hades.”  
  
  
  
Hades began to trot to [Śānti], where she was sure Argo was waiting for them. Hopefully it wouldn’t take too long to get there.  
  
  
  
Now that she could heal again, Persephone felt giddy. Feeling much more confident, she decided that she’d climb to the next floor the long way.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Yuuna huffed as she beat off another of the [Kobold Troopers]. “I hate this part,” she muttered as she ran towards another of the mobs. “I swear, this place is infested…”  
  
  
  
She hated this place _so_. _Darned. Much._ How close was she to the [Safe Zone] where she could rest and maybe have a snack? Looking around to make sure that she had cleared the area (for the moment), she opened her menu and opened her map, which had the complete layout because she’d paid Argo (dratted [Rat]!) for the data.  
  
  
  
She stood there in silence for a moment before deflating, “I’m not even halfway there?” She asked in disbelief. That was very disheartening. Especially because she was on the lower level limit to be in here. She sighed, before firming her expression. “I’m not going to stop, not yet.” She checked her health and pulled a potion out of her inventory. She had made sure to stock up on them, and she did a quick calculation on how many she had gone through.  
  
  
  
Just over half, and with how much further she had to go to reach a [Safe Zone], it was beginning to look like she would need to turn back soon anyway. Maybe she could go on a little further…  
  
  
  
Still, it was disappointing that she would likely not make it to the [Safe Zone] this time. She took another look at how many potions she had. “I really don’t want to stop, but I don’t want to be stuck in here if I run out either…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
In the end, she decided to turn back and return to Tolbana and get a room for the night. “I suppose I’ll stock up in the morning and try again.” She was almost to level ten now, maybe she’d gain the needed level tomorrow.  
  
  
  
“My goal…” she looked out the window, gaze on the pillar that was the Labyrinth. She was determined to conquer the damned thing, if only to prove to herself that she could take care of herself. “Is to make it to the second floor on my own. I know that the ones on the top floor are halfway through clearing the eleventh…”  
  
  
  
She wasn’t worried about catching up to them. Yuuna had never really been a hardcore gamer. She played most games because she found the lore within them fascinating. It was why she was putting so much effort into learning how to read the language that all the books were written in. She didn’t care how hard it was or would continue to be. “I can do this,” Yuuna told herself as she took the [Primer] out of her menu. “I will get this if it kills me.” It was a lot of work to do just to sing things from the lore like she did with the other games she’d played, but if there was one thing Yuuna knew, it was that her effort would be worth it.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Klein looked down at the Map Data Kirito had sent him and then up at the Japanese Manor done in the traditional style where the [Katana Skill] was supposed to be obtained from. The boy’s note had reassured his older friend that he’d double checked himself (since Kirito had been the one to find it in the first place) that the skill was still in the same place and that was here. “Well, let’s see how this goes,” he grumbled.  
  
  
  
Klein, Tsuboi Ryoutaru, had always wanted to be a Samurai, and here was his chance to become one. Or a reasonable facsimile of one, maybe. He’d come here on his own because none of the others were interested in learning to use the Katana. But they were close enough that if anything happened that they’d be able to help, if he needed them.  
  
  
  
He’d have to remember to thank Kirito somehow for giving him the information he needed to realize his dream. ...Well… Every Samurai needed a Lord, right? Er, or was that Lady in this case? But that was something to decide on later. Right now he had to complete whatever this quest was going to be.  
  
  
  
He took a deep breath and approached the house, “Well, here goes nothing.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Silica hissed as she killed what seemed like the millionth [Kobold Trooper], “Why did we come back down here again?” she asked, turning to her older friend.  
  
  
  
Luna rolled her eyes, “There are a few mats I need that can only be found in this Labyrinth, remember? I think there were a few things you needed too.” She opened her Menu, “It looks like we are almost to the [Safe Zone], so we’ll be able to take a break soon.”  
  
  
  
“Thank goodness,” Silica breathed, “As fun as this is, I’m getting bored.”  
  
  
  
“Well, we don’t play games to grind trash mobs,” Luna pointed out as she checked the area. “We’ve cleared this part; it’s time to get going. I still need…” she checked her list, “Three things that Kobolds rarely drop, so we might be here a while.”  
  
  
  
Silica sighed, her head hanging in defeat. “This is starting to feel like Shiny Hunting…”  
  
  
  
“I know,” Luna agreed, “Tediously boring but ever so satisfying when you find what you’re looking for…”  
  
  
  
A scream made them both turn. “What was that?” Silica asked, already sprinting toward the sound.  
  
  
  
“That sounded like another Player!” Luna caught up to her shorter friend quickly, “They sound like they’re in trouble!”  
  
  
  
“Then we’d best help them.” Silica shot back as they rounded the corner in time to see the white haired girl’s shield shattering. She didn’t even have a weapon out, and there were three Kobolds surrounding her. “No bets on her having a second weapon.”  
  
  
  
“Less talking more kicking Kobold ass!” Luna snapped as she crashed into one of the Kobolds that had ganged up on the younger girl.  
  
  
  
Silica let out a war cry as she came down on a second, raining death from above. She pushed off the Kobold just before it burst into particles and came down on the last of the mobs as Luna charged it.  
  
  
  
Luna caught Silica in her arms as the mob died, “Great job Silica.”  
  
  
  
“You too Luna,” Silica hopped down and they both turned to the girl, who was staring at them in stunned silence.  
  
  
  
“Um,” the girl seemed to deflate.  
  
  
  
Silica sighed, “Are you alright?”  
  
  
  
The girl nodded, “Yes. Thank you.” She took a deep breath, “I’m Yuuna.”  
  
  
  
“What happened, Yuuna?” Luna asked, extending a hand to the white haired girl.  
  
  
  
“I must have forgotten to take my mace to the Blacksmith to make sure it was repaired, it shattered half an hour ago, and I’ve been struggling to protect myself with my shield since.” Yuuna took Luna’s hand and let the woman pull her to her feet. “I’m sure I’d be dead now if you hadn’t arrived just now.”  
  
  
  
Silica checked her Inventory, “Well, I don’t have a mace…”  
  
  
  
Luna opened her own then her eyes lit up, “One of the Kobolds dropped one for me, probably because Yuuna’s here.” she pulled it out and handed it over, “Here, that’s half the problem solved. It’s probably better than what you’ve been using anyway.”  
  
  
  
Yuuna took the mace and checked its stats, “Yeah, it’s much better,” she grinned up at Luna. “Thanks much!”  
  
  
  
Luna smirked back as Silica pulled a shield out of her inventory.  
  
  
  
“The Kobolds dropped this,” Silica stated, holding the Buckler out for Yuuna to take, “It’s not exactly what you had before, but it should do until you can get to town and replace it with whatever kind of shield you were using.”  
  
  
  
Yuuna smiled at the younger girl as she clipped the Buckler to her belt. “Thanks. I should check how many potions I have left…” She went to open her menu.  
  
  
  
“Why don’t you do that back at the [Safe Zone]?” Silica asked as Pina landed on her shoulder, chirping happily.  
  
  
  
Yuuna froze blinking, “What is…?”  
  
  
  
“This is Pina,” Silica pet Pina’s feathery head, “She’s a [Feathered Dragon] and my pet. I tamed her.”  
  
  
  
“...It’s possible to do that?” Yuuna blinked, backtracking with her saviors to the [Safe Zone], a little nook in the wall that led to a small room.  
  
  
  
“Apparently,” Silica shrugged, “It surprised me too. I really like Pina.”  
  
  
  
The white haired girl giggled, “I can see why. Is she as warm as she looks?”  
  
  
  
“Yep, and just about as cuddly,” Silica agreed as they entered the [Safe Zone].  
  
  
  
Yuuna slid to the ground and opened her Inventory, “Not even half left, I was so sure I’d make it today!”  
  
  
  
“What are you doing?” Luna asked curiously as she checked her own.  
  
  
  
“I’m trying to clear the Labyrinth on my own and climb to the next floor.” Yuuna grumbled.  
  
  
  
Silica invited Yuuna to their party, “Pina can heal a small amount of HP, and Luna and I are a bit over leveled. “If you want, we can escort you the rest of the way.”  
  
  
  
“I wouldn’t want to intrude,” Yuuna couldn’t look at either of them, “And aren’t you both here for something different?”  
  
  
  
“We can always come back, it’s not like we’re on a time limit.” Luna shrugged, deliberately ignoring the fact that all their bodies were lying in hospital beds wasting away. Yes, there was actually a time limit. But no one wanted to think about it.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Klein tiredly trooped out of the Japanese Manor, an actual Katana at his side. He was much too tired to celebrate completing the quest. All he wanted to do at the moment was to return to the inn where the rest of his guild was staying and sleep. It was a rare occasion where he didn’t want to get a drink first. But right now, Klein was finding it hard to care about anything other than rest. He barely managed to cover a yawn with one hand. Perhaps fighting some mobs would wake him up, but he found it rather tempting to just waste one of his [Teleport Crystals]. Not that he actually would.  
  
  
  
Now he just needed to decide what to do to show his younger friend Kirito how grateful he was that the kid went to the trouble of making sure he knew where the quest was.  



	24. In Which Progress is Made

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Progress isn't only made in came.

Klein sat the next morning at the table in the inn with the rest of his guild, including the four new members, Bunbo, Boxy, Binah and Rikoukeidar. “Ok, so I want to do something for Kirito, seeing as the kid went to a lot of trouble to confirm that the [Katana Skill] was still in the same place. But I can’t think of anything, even after sleeping on it.” He sighed. “So… do you guys have any ideas?”  
  
  
  
The four reincarnated Youma looked to each other, “Well, we kind of owe him too, for pointing us to the [Martial Arts] skill for Boxy…” Binah brought up, looking to the man that had been the most helped by the kid. “Boxy?”  
  
  
  
Boxy looked thoughtful, “We aren’t really a Samurai Guild but we could still swear Fealty, couldn’t we?” he asked, “You know, for Role Playing purposes?”  
  
  
  
“This _is_ a Role Playing Game,” Bunbo agreed thoughtfully, “But I’m not sure how appropriate this would be…”  
  
  
  
Rikoukeidar smirked, chuckling, “Are you _kidding_? The look on the kid’s face alone would be worth it!” She looked positively gleeful.  
  
  
  
Binah snickered in agreement, “The look on Asuna-sama’s face too.” She nodded in satisfaction.  
  
  
  
Dynamm gave a long suffering sigh when he saw that Klein was actually considering it. Some days he felt like he was the only sane person in the game. And seeing as there were upwards of maybe seven and a half thousand players at the very most still alive in game, _that was saying something_.  
  
  
  
“So…” Dale spoke up slowly, looking around. “Does this mean that we will be joining the [Commander] on the top most floor now?” He asked curiously.  
  
  
  
Klein shook his head, “Can’t do that yet, we’re all under leveled right now.” He turned to the four Youma. “Especially you four. But I don’t see why we can’t keep to the floor just under the top most floor.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Suguha slipped into Asuna’s room, “Good morning Kou.” She chirped cheerfully.  
  
  
  
“Good morning Sugu,” Kouichirou replied as he opened his laptop. “Shall we see what’s going on with our siblings this morning?” He asked with a grin.  
  
  
  
“Sure.” Suguha frowned, “Oh, right, have you been having trouble flying in ALO?” She remembered to ask.  
  
  
  
“Not so much,” he replied as he opened the Live Feed, which showed that Kirito and Asuna hadn’t gotten up yet. “But then, I haven’t tried to do anything fancy yet.”  
  
  
  
“Ok, so, do you like using the [Flight Controller]?” Suguha tried a different approach. “Because, I can teach you how to fly without it.” She settled herself on the bed, close enough to see the laptop screen.  
  
  
  
“Not really, it’s awkward to use.” He replied with a shrug.  
  
  
  
“Can you feel what’s going on with your wings?” Suguha wanted to know. She had to know as much as possible if she was to teach him to fly without it.  
  
  
  
He blinked in confusion. “Feel?” Kouichirou looked at her, “What do you mean?”  
  
  
  
“If you really need to ask that then I’ll just have to show you in game.” Suguha shrugged, a bit put out that he didn’t understand. “It felt, to me, like muscles in my back were getting flexed when my wings were out and I was flying.” Perhaps just wasn’t as sensitive to the system?  
  
  
  
“I see,” Kouichirou grinned, “How about we meet up in Arun and then you can show me what you’re talking about.”  
  
  
  
“Sure,” Suguha agreed. “...Can I tell my mother about the Stream?” She hesitated to ask.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba Akihiko sat up in the bed, rubbing his face with his hands after logging out. “I’m so tired of this shit…” If only he could boot the player base for a week! He wasn’t even thirty and he already felt too old for this kind of thing. Unfortunately though, booting everyone was likely to kill or cripple the remaining almost eight thousand trapped recruits.  
  
  
  
“Something up Captain?” asked a familiar voice to his left.  
  
  
  
Kayaba blinked, looking up in the direction of the voice, “Tilnel, good to see you.” He hadn’t been expecting to see her out and about yet.  
  
  
  
The younger of the Silver Survivors gave him a toothy grin, “And you, Captain.” She paused, noticing the tenseness in his shoulders, something she’d previously only seen when he was dealing with Serenity’s training, and her crazy ideas. “Is something bothering you?”  
  
  
  
“Just feeling old beyond my years Tilnel,” Akihiko admitted wearily, “Old and tired. SAO might be a simulation of Castle Aincrad but…” he stopped then shook his head. “It was supposed to be fun. Sure, I’m training them all to operate as an army for our Princess, but it was also supposed to be _enjoyable_.” His shoulders slumped in a way that Captain Heathcliff never would have done, never would have allowed.  
  
  
  
Tilnel nodded in understanding. “No matter how important Asuna’s Army is, you wanted everyone to enjoy themselves while they learned,” she said. “And Zoicite is the reason that no one is.”  
  
  
  
Akihiko huffed, “Unfortunately. If I had a bit more agency I’d go out and put that damned corpse back in his grave.” He sighed; leaning against the Medicuboid’s monitoring equipment. “As it is, I’m on house arrest so I can’t go anywhere without an escort.”  
  
  
  
“I’m sure Kizmel and I could do some things for you, Captain.” Tilnel said, serious about the offer. “We might be dealing with Culture Shock, but we are both trained well enough that we can keep it hidden.”  
  
  
  
“And I’m sure that will be handy.” Kayaba replied in all seriousness, pushing himself up. “I’m going to go visit my brother. You may follow if you want.”  
  
  
  
Tilnel watched him leave, “There is something about the Captain and his brother. I wish I had my equipment so that I could confirm my suspicions.” She followed him a moment later. Not remembering that she had some of the equipment she needed on her.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Ami sighed as she entered Asuna’s room after her Shift was over. Today was a rare day off for her; hopefully there wouldn’t be any Youma attacks. “Today was a good day; no one got kicked from SAO.” She paused as she moved the computer Asuna’s brother was keeping in the room, “Well, I suppose I mean that no one who was kicked was seriously injured leaving the game…”  
  
  
  
She pulled her computer out, putting it where his had been and started it up. Taking a look around to make sure that no one else was there, she opened the latest Touhou game that she’d been able to download. “Ok, here we go. Maybe I’ll get some ideas for new spells from this one…” She already had all of Cirno’s Spell Cards as attacks that she could cast and forget. Perhaps she should figure out how to get Reimu or Marisa's Spell Cards to work next.  
  
  
  
Limiting herself to Cirno would not be a very good thing. At this point, she had quite the library of Spell Cards that she’d figured out how to make work. Pulling one out was always amusing because her friends still hadn’t figured out where she’d first gotten the idea from. In the beginning she’d been pathetic with only Sharbon Spray and Aqua Mist.  
  
  
  
It was always fun to unleash ‘Bullet Hell’ on the Youma, but even with her ‘Set and Forget’ Spell Cards she still couldn’t touch those stupid corpses! There were just too many Youma to deal with.  
  
  
  
She was actually kind of disappointed that none of her comrades had figured out where she was getting her ideas from. Then again, with how much they were all struggling to keep up a facsimile of a normal life up for their families, maybe she shouldn’t be so surprised. Ami’s eyes lit on one of her earlier videos, against Flandre Scarlet from one of her oldest games. “...Maybe I should work on replicating Flan’s Spell Cards next… the looks on everyone’s faces should I get Four of a Kind to work would be _so_ worth it…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Mamoru sighed tiredly as he walked into his fiancée’s hospital room, “It’s been a long day Mio.” He sat in the chair next to the bed and pulled out the sword that he was forced to not use. “I wish I could use this to fight the Youma, but that would tip our hand wouldn’t it? Pluto knows, but I’ve spoken to her about this several times now. You are both right. If we are to even try flying under the radar… I can’t show all my skills yet…” Maybe he did understand, but that didn’t make it any less frustrating.  
  
  
  
He shook his head, “Anyway, I suspect that Ami is keeping something about her spells hidden from the rest of us. I’ve seen her using spells that remind me of something, something that I can’t recall what it is at the moment. Some of those spells look very familiar though…”  
  
  
  
He picked up a lock of hair and began running his fingers through it to get the tangles out. He blinked, “Mio… your hair…” Why was her hair getting darker?  
  
  
  
If there was anything good about the situation, it was that she didn’t look exactly like that corpse anymore. But that was about it.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Tilnel sat on the cushion in the room she shared with her sister, “Kizmel?”  
  
  
  
Kizmel turned her attention from the Japanese Primer she was working on, “Yes, Tilnel?”  
  
  
  
Tilnel bit her lip, “Do you think Captain Heathcliff will succeed?”  
  
  
  
Kizmel met her sister’s gaze. “According to the Captain, they are now on the eleventh floor. You remember that floor right? A simulation of Mercury?”  
  
  
  
Tilnel nodded with a slight smile, “Yes one of the Royal Academy’s Satellite Campuses was there, and I spent most of my time there while you and Serenity were training with him.”  
  
  
  
“Asuna’s memories are going to be rather important now.” the elder elf stretched, “I remember the Commander saying that they had barely made it to the tenth floor in the Beta of the Simulation.” Kizmel looked down at her Primer and began to tap a finger to the desk she was sitting at. “If I remember rightly… I accompanied the Princess to perhaps the fortieth floor, and that was after I’d climbed all the way to the top with you, maybe the year before she was born.”  
  
  
  
“Not that it matters anymore,” Tilnel agreed softly, “We don’t even know if anyone is still there.”  
  
  
  
Kizmel closed the Primer, “We don’t know if Castle Aincrad is _still functioning_.” she grumbled dejectedly, “Never mind if it’s still inhabited or not…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Malachite gave a scream as he killed yet another mob. Checking to make sure that he’d cleared the area, he turned to look at who had come to see him. “Who are you?” he demanded, flicking his long white hair over one shoulder.  
  
  
  
“The name’s Morte,” the other Player said, his voice dripping with disdain, “And my Boss wants to meet with you.”  
  
  
  
The Red Player huffed, “And why would I want to meet this Boss of yours?” The General glared at the other Player.  
  
  
  
Morte chuckled darkly. “My Boss wants to make this a game for the strong. Where we eliminate the weak. My arm was cut off by one of those weaklings and I wish to get revenge…”  
  
  
  
Malachite’s eyes narrowed as he frowned, “Tell me more…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
PoH smirked as he watched the Red Player following his Second. “Greetings, I am PoH.”  
  
  
  
Malachite gave him a silent, searching look. “I am Malachite.”  
  
  
  
“I’m sure by now you’ve heard about the Players that are taking what Kayaba said a bit too seriously?” PoH asked.  
  
  
  
“I’ve heard of the Brat, yes.” the Dark Kingdom General replied. “What about him?”  
  
  
  
“I’d like to get him out of the way and am willing to pay handsomely for his… _removal_ …”  
  
  
  
Malachite said nothing as he listened. Maybe this was just what he needed to take his mind off the fact that he still couldn’t make his magic work and had no idea where to even begin.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna gripped Kirito’s sleeve tightly as they walked into the Boss Room, “None of these bosses have felt familiar…”  
  
  
  
“That just means that _she_ has probably never faced these lower bosses.” Kirito replied, keeping a lookout for any sign of the boss. He was the first to notice the glowing silver eyes watching them. “Well, that or… they were messed with by other devs. On top of my brother not remembering completely. He could have gotten quite a few of the bosses wrong because he just doesn’t remember what they were anymore…”  
  
  
  
“That’s true,” Asuna agreed, looking around nervously. She may not like that the memories made it hard for her to tell who she was, but not having any insight at all was even more terrifying than her not knowing who she was.  
  
  
  
There was a loud roar when the last of the Raid Team was in the room, and a huge half vulpine half humanoid creature leaped out of the darkness of the shadows, its name above its head: [Alopex Lagopus the Wise].  
  
  
  
“Great, a fox, should have guessed…” Kirito groaned, “Should have known…” he took a deep breath and raised his voice so that it would carry. Hopefully the rest of the raid would listen to his warning, even if he wasn’t the one in charge. “Kitsune are known shapeshifters, so be ready for at least one [Form Change] to happen, that means the attack patterns and weapon _will_ change at some point other than at the very end.” Why was it so much easier to take command when he was faced with the boss but not in a raid meeting?  
  
  
  
[Alopex Lagopus the Wise] gave another earth shattering roar.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes hardened, “Asuna.”  
  
  
  
The girl at his side nodded, “Ready when you are.”  
  
  
  
“Then let’s go!”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito wiped his forehead as he watched the Boss [Form Change] again. They were on the last half of the last HP Bar. “We’ve been at this for over an hour already…”  
  
  
  
“Well, we can’t exactly stop,” Asuna pointed out. “The Boss is almost beaten and we’ve never had to turn back once we’ve gotten to this point, yet.”  
  
  
  
“It’s that yet that scares me.” Kirito muttered as he watched the Boss’ HP fall farther towards the Red. “And we need to get back in there before anyone dies.”  
  
  
  
Asuna hissed, lunging after her partner.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna slid to her knees as the Boss splintered into polygons. “Floor Eleven has been Cleared, right?” She asked, breathlessly.  
  
  
  
“Yeah,” Kirito agreed, “Onto Floor Twelve.” He slid to the ground behind her, also breathing harder than normal, but more deeply than she was. “Moon, Mercury…” His eyes narrowed. “You know… I wouldn’t be surprised if for the next few floors… we end up touring the Solar System…”  
  
  
  
She leaned into his back, “If that’s so then we’re going to be on Venus next…”  
  
  
  
“Or visiting her castle.” Kirito agreed, “I’m not sure if I’d be able to handle that right now…”  
  
  
  
“Tired?” Asuna teased.  
  
  
  
“Like you wouldn’t believe…” He mumbled, covering a yawn.  
  
  
  
“[Commander], you and Asuna-sama should head to the next floor and rent a room.” A familiar, yet unexpected voice said from above them.  
  
  
  
Kirito looked up, “Lux? I thought you weren’t going to be part of the Assault Team.” He gave the blonde a tired smile.  
  
  
  
“I figured I should try my hand at one boss raid,” Lux grinned, holding out a hand to help him up.  
  
  
  
“Well, you did well, even if you aren’t going to do any more,” Kirito accepted her hand and let her help him to his feet.  
  
  
  
“Thank you, Kirito-sama.” Lux bowed before offering to help Asuna to her feet as well.  
  
  
  
Kirito hid his wince by rolling his eyes, “I told you not to call me that, Lux.” He reminded the older girl.  
  
  
  
Lux stuck her tongue out at him, giggling.  
  
  
  
That was until Asuna pulled her close, “No flirting with _my [Black Sun]_ , do you understand?” the brunette asked in a falsely sweet but deadly tone.  
  
  
  
“Y-yes, Asuna-sama…” Lux agreed, sweating slightly. She’d never seen the other girl in this light. It was quite terrifying.  
  
  
  
“Good,” Asuna chirped, letting go of the other girl. She threaded her arm around one of Kirito’s, “Shall we go? The sooner we get there the sooner we can take that cat nap you were talking about…”  
  
  
  
Kirito did his best to push down his blush, “Anything you want, Hime,” he agreed, letting her pull him up the stairs and out of the dungeon. Why did he find all of her moods so attractive? Shouldn’t he find her anger terrifying? As they ascended the stairs to the next floor, Kirito’s sharp ears picked up the sounds of bets intensifying.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba smirked as he watched. “Cardinal, bring up the conditions for the [Unique Skills] that we’ve managed to debug so far.”  
  
  
  
“Yes Master,” Cardinal replied, her nimble fingers dancing over the holographic keys. The AI brought up the list and sent it to Kayaba’s terminal.  
  
  
  
He blinked noticing something he thought of as off about one of the Skills, “Why doesn’t Persephone have her skill yet Cardinal?” He asked with great concern.  
  
  
  
“I have set the conditions as such that _She_ will be getting [Sacred Thorn] in the next few weeks, Master.” Cardinal sighed. Why was he still scared? Nothing of note had happened with that Player yet. “She even fulfilled one of the conditions I set down for her yesterday.” She just couldn’t understand why he was letting his fear rule his actions and thought process. Yes, it was logical to be scared of Saturn’s power, but, on the other hand… Nothing had happened to the other Players yet.  
  
  
  
“Cardinal, she needs that [Skill] now.” Kayaba’s voice began to rise a few octaves, his panic becoming quite apparent. His face was still quite pale.  
  
  
  
The AI took a deep breath, “Master, I cannot just give out these [Unique Skills]; there are criteria that have to be met first. _You wrote my programming that way, remember?_ I am not going to assign any skill to any player until that Player has met the conditions for unlocking said skill. And the said skill is debugged of course.” she turned to give him a reproachful glare, “I know Saturn’s power scares you silly Master, but I need you to calm down and think about it. The conditions are set, and, barring any mitigating circumstances, that would cause her to get access sooner, Player ID: Persephone will be getting the skill before they reach Floor Twenty _at the very latest_.”  
  
  
  
Kayaba took a deep breath and forced himself to take Cardinal’s advice and think through the fear. After calming down, he had to admit that his assistant had the right idea. “You are right, she was always going to get the skill, but just giving her the skill before she has proven that she has what it takes…” He admitted his mistake.  
  
  
  
Cardinal sighed in relief, glad that the [Game Master] was thinking logically again. Now that he was no longer mindlessly panicked, she wondered when, or if, he would give Player ID: Kirito access to the [Game Master] account that had been created for him.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
She looked around. Was she hallucinating now? It, was it, getting warmer? She turned her attention back to her screen, to her older sister, and to their parents.

 


	25. Venusian Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venus is not a fun place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The name of the main town means Yellow Venus. Yes, I know, not very creative... All the other names on this floor have something to do with Fertility.

For the first time in a long time, Yui took her eyes off the two players she’d been watching since the beginning and looked around the dark space that had always been her home. She shivered, rubbing her hands against her upper arms from the cold. What could have caught her attention?  
  
  
  
A shiver made its way down her spine and she tried to dismiss it. Those Players, how she longed to meet those Players…  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna pulled Kirito down the path as quickly as she could. Something about this area was making her beyond nervous.  
  
  
  
“Bad feeling?” Kirito asked, keeping up with her swift pace easily.  
  
  
  
“Something like that.” Asuna agreed. “I’m not sure, but there’s something here that _she_ is terrified of.”  
  
  
  
“And that is making you irrationally fearful of something you probably would not normally be afraid of.” Kirito replied dryly as he pulled her back and brought his sword up, parrying the attack of a mob that he didn’t recognize. Not that he expected to recognize any of the mobs from now on.  
  
  
  
He pushed upwards and then brought the sword down in one swift, hard movement, cutting the mob in half with almost no trouble.  
  
  
  
“Oh gods,” Asuna breathed, “I _hate_ this floor already!”  
  
  
  
Kirito gave her shoulder a squeeze, “They have low defense, since I was able to kill it with a single hit.”  
  
  
  
“Did you even use a [Sword Skill]?” Asuna asked incredulously as their journey resumed.  
  
  
  
“No, I didn’t.” Kirito’s eyes narrowed in thought.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Suguha took a deep breath. She was finally going to come clean to her mother. Finally tell the woman that she spent most of her time, not with her brother as she’d always said, but with a friend and his sister instead. “Ma?”  
  
  
  
Kirigaya Midori looked up from where she was cooking. “Yes Sugu?”  
  
  
  
Suguha nervously sat down, “Um, I’ve… not exactly been truthful about where I’ve been going…” She forced herself to look up from the table and meet her mother’s gaze.  
  
  
  
“And where have you been going, if not to visit your brother?” Midori asked a bit more sharply than she intended.  
  
  
  
Suguha flinched. “I… You know that Kou’s little sister is also trapped right?”  
  
  
  
“You mean Yuuki Kouichirou?” Midori’s eyes narrowed, “His father has asked me to write something to do with Alfheim Online.”  
  
  
  
“Did you…?” Suguha hesitated to ask.  
  
  
  
“I told him I’d think about it.” Midori’s tone of voice told Suguha that she would not be distracted and there was no room for argument. “What’s this about your friend and his sister?”  
  
  
  
Suguha shrank back, “Um, you remember the stream that Kazu set up so that he could record his Play through of the Sword Art Online Beta for me to watch if I wanted, right?”  
  
  
  
“What of it?” Midori asked in a softer voice. “Kazu turned his off remember.”  
  
  
  
Suguha bit her lip, “Kou forgot to do the same or he was much too busy to find time to do the same, so now, he has a view of what’s going on.” She hastened to explain, “And his sister just happens to be Kazu’s partner.”  
  
  
  
Midori slowly took the pan off the heat. “You’ve been watching Kazu fight for his life?”  
  
  
  
Suguha nodded, careful to keep her mouth shut.  
  
  
  
“And why, _Young Lady_ , have you kept this from me?” Midori’s eyes were narrowed in anger. “I am your mother, I am Kazu’s mother. I deserved to know sooner.”  
  
  
  
Suguha slumped in her chair, “I know, Ma, I’m sorry.” She bowed her head low, “But it wasn’t my place to tell.”  
  
  
  
Midori let out a breath through her nose. “Do Kou’s parents know?”  
  
  
  
“Last I asked, his mother did and he said he was going to show his father as well.” Suguha looked thoughtful, “I didn’t tell you right away because he’s letting me watch the Stream he _forgot to turn off_. So it wasn’t really my place to tell.” She leaned forward, slumping, “I’m going to ask if I can tell Pa too, whenever he comes back. That is, _if_ he comes back before SAO ends...”  
  
  
  
Midori gave her daughter a smile, “Well, thank you for finally telling me, Sugu.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Tilnel curled up next to her sister with a Primer in her lap, “So sister, how long do you think it will take for the Princess’s guardians to notice our ears?”  
  
  
  
It might take a while,” Kizmel replied in broken Japanese, “but I’m sure it will hit them soon that we aren’t exactly human.”  
  
  
  
Tilnel laughed, “That’s true, I think they were more focused on getting us off the moon alive than anything else.” She paused, “How much Cor do you want to bet that Mars’ grandfather will figure it out before the Senshi do?”  
  
  
  
“Now Tilnel,” Kizmel set her Primer down and gave her younger sister an impish grin. “You know that’s a sucker’s bet. And I don’t have any Cor on me anyway, so I couldn’t make a bet even if I wanted too.”  
  
  
  
Tilnel giggled, “So, should we keep our ears hidden or not.”  
  
  
  
“Sister, you love tormenting the Princess’ Guardians, don’t you?” Kizmel asked, not expecting an answer.  
  
  
  
“It was the only entertainment we had after being relocated to the Moon…” Tilnel pouted.  
  
  
  
Kizmel smirked, “Tilnel.”  
  
  
  
Tilnel gave Kizmel a curious look, “Yes?”  
  
  
  
“Notice that I never said you couldn’t…” Kizmel poked her sister’s cheek.  
  
  
  
The Elven sisters shared an evil smile before dissolving into giggles.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna stared at the horde of Mobs that that surrounded her and Kirito. “…Why is _she_ scared of these things?” she asked, nonplussed as the stare down continued.  
  
  
  
“I don’t know,” Kirito shrugged, “These things are pitifully weak, they don’t even stand up against one of my regular attacks…”  
  
  
  
“You know, Kirito-kun…” Asuna frowned.  
  
  
  
“Yes, Asuna?” He didn’t take his eyes off of the Mobs.  
  
  
  
“We are ridiculously overleveled, aren’t we?” she asked.  
  
  
  
Kirito checked their levels on his HUD, “We are almost level twenty six and twenty-four, so yeah. I’d say so.”  
  
  
  
“Then why are we out here instead of in town activating the [Teleport Pad]?”  
  
  
  
He gave her a wry grin, “Maybe because these things have a ridiculous respawn rate?”  
  
  
  
She nodded sagely. “Yes, that would do it wouldn’t it?” Asuna grumbled as the first mob attacked.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
They were both really tired by the time they got to [Haḷadi Śukra]. Asuna was openly leaning on Kirito for support and Kirito himself was yawning almost every other minute.  
  
  
  
Kirito rubbed at his eyes, “How about I get us a room first? You can go to bed while I open the Floor?”  
  
  
  
Asuna peeled an eye open, “Are you sure you won’t fall asleep on your feet in the Square while doing so? I would hate for my Pillow to get trampled…”  
  
  
  
Kirito went bright red. “No, I should be fine Asuna; you’re the one falling asleep on her feet…”  
  
  
  
“If you think that’s best then that’s what we’ll do.” His partner agreed sleepily, “Just don’t take too long.”  
  
  
  
“I won’t.” Kirito tugged gently on a few strands of her hair as he looked for an Inn so that they could both crash. Upon finding [Prende’s Bed and Breakfast], Kirito rented a room for the next two days and dumped Asuna on the large bed in the center of the room. “If you wake up from your nap before I get back the room’s got a bath, though I don’t know how big it is.” He pulled the covers over his partner’s half asleep form, “I’ll be back in a minute or so.” And he left the room to open the floor.  
  
  
  
Covering a yawn with a hand, Kirito made the short trip to the [Teleport Pad] and turned it on before making a hasty retreat. When he got back to the Inn he paused long enough to note that Asuna hadn’t moved an inch before clambering into bed and curling protectively around her. He joined her in dreamland as soon as his head hit the pillow.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The next morning, on a hunch, Kirito asked if he and Asuna could borrow the Inn’s kitchen.  
  
  
  
The NPC owner, Prende smiled, “As long as you have everything you need, you may.” The woman replied.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s smile just bloomed. “Kirito…”  
  
  
  
“What?” Kirito gave her a shy smile, “You told me you like to cook, and after what happened at Moonrise Lake on the eighth floor…”  
  
  
  
Asuna didn’t even bother hiding her blush as she pulled him into the kitchen.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna was again hit with a sense of… _wrongness_ when they met the Princess Venus NPC. “Something’s _off_ about her,” she told Kirito as they walked away with a quest.  
  
  
  
Kirito gave her a look, “Is it the same feeling you got from the Princess Mercury NPC [Downstairs]?”  
  
  
  
She nodded, “Yep.” she sighed, “It’s giving me a massive headache…”  
  
  
  
“So be prepared for memories that double as nightmares?” he asked seriously. “I’ll be more than ready to help you deal with them.”  
  
  
  
Asuna stopped and watched Kirito for a moment. She smiled, taking his hand. “Thank you.” She pulled him out of the city and into the fields to grind.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Suguha dashed into the Hospital, “I’m here to visit Asuna.” She was given her pass and made her way to the elevators. She slipped into the first one she could find, (thankfully it was empty _this time_ ), and hurried to Asuna’s room.  
  
  
  
“You are early,” Kouichirou noted in amusement. “What are you so pleased about?” He asked, his eyes fond as the younger girl plopped down to sit on his sister’s bed.  
  
  
  
“Well…” Suguha started running her fingers through Asuna’s hair. “I didn’t get in trouble for coming here instead of spending time with my brother, thankfully. On that note, my mother wants to come see the Stream for herself. She can, right?”  
  
  
  
“Just tell me when you want to bring her and I’ll have a larger monitor connected to the laptop so that we can all watch it more easily.” Kouichirou agreed. “Are you going to tell your father too?”  
  
  
  
“Right now he’s out of the country on business.” Suguha grumbled, frowning. “We don’t know when he’ll be back. But I do want to tell him, if he gets back before they fight their way out of SAO.”  
  
  
  
“Well, you have my permission to tell him.” Kouichirou reassured her. “And I’ll say something if my father shows interest in meeting you and your mother.” He stopped, the mouse hovering over the link for the Live Stream. “I’ll even give you a heads up for if he plans to come see the Stream when you are here.”  
  
  
  
“Awesome.” Suguha grinned, “How are they this morning?”  
  
  
  
“They were cooking breakfast together earlier, it was positively adorable.” Kouichirou grinned. “We are going to have so much blackmail on them by the time they get out…”  
  
  
  
“Will it be enough to ensure that your mother isn’t a problem if they want to marry as soon as possible after waking?” Suguha was curious.  
  
  
  
“…Possibly.” Was Kouichirou’s only reply. “Though for them to be able to pull that off legally, it would be a few years anyway, and hopefully they will be out long before then.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito pulled out a water skin. “I don’t know why I’m surprised it’s so hot on this floor.”  
  
  
  
“Well, we are on Venus.” Asuna agreed, “So, how are we going to find this deserter?”  
  
  
  
Kirito wiped the sweat from his brow, “Well, my best guess would be to start at the Venusian Barracks, wherever that is.” He looked at her over his [Spell of Illusionary Book]. “Getting anything from _her_ for this floor, other than the most amusing of fears?”  
  
  
  
“Not at the moment,” Asuna admitted unhappily. “Although there is a name that comes to mind…”  
  
  
  
“And what name is that?” he asked in confusion.  
  
  
  
“…Adonis, though, I’m not exactly sure _why_.” Asuna took the skin and sipped the cold water.  
  
  
  
“Well, I don’t think we’ve met an NPC by that name yet, so I guess we’ll see, right?” Kirito asked as he got up. “I think our break is over.”  
  
  
  
“Yeah, we should get going.” Asuna agreed taking his hand and letting him pull her to her feet. “Well, the princess isn’t sure if he’s deserted, but he has gone missing so…”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded.  
  
  
  
Neither noticed the red eyed, red haired NPC watching them with an unsettling smirk.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Suguha grinned as she finally got to Arun. “I love flying!” She was buying this game, regardless of how the other mechanics might work. Unfortunately, she didn’t know who she was looking for.  
  
  
  
“Hey, are you Leafa?”  
  
  
  
She turned, “Yes, I’m Leafa.” she confirmed slowly, “And you are?”  
  
  
  
“I’m Kou,” the blond Puka replied with a grin. “I’m glad I finally found you.”  
  
  
  
“Your Avatar looks nothing like you Kou,” Suguha told him bluntly.  
  
  
  
“And Leafa looks nothing like Suguha.” The Puka, Kou replied blandly. “But that’s the point, isn’t it?”  
  
  
  
“I guess?” Suguha shrugged, “But now I can show you what I meant!”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Venus was hot. One of the hottest planets in the Solar System because it was so close to the sun. And though there was no simulated pressure, the simulated heat (though thankfully not the _four hundred_ it was in reality) made it hard to get anywhere in any amount of time that could be considered quickly.  
  
  
  
It was in the field between the main city on the floor and a smaller village [Phalavattāda Bhūmi] that Kirito and Asuna came across their second Youma.  
  
  
  
Kirito had unequiped his longcoat it was so hot. Not that it mattered with how swiftly he’d pulled his partner behind a nearby boulder. “Take a look, but be careful.” He told her, leaning out slightly to get a better look at the Youma he’d spotted.  
  
  
  
Asuna followed his advice. “How long has it been since we’ve seen one?” she asked in a whisper.  
  
  
  
“I think it was on the fifth floor.” Kirito replied just as quietly. “I wonder why we haven’t seen any more until now…” He was tense, ready to leap out and kill the mob.  
  
  
  
“Kirito, I don’t think we can do anything yet.” Asuna pulled him back behind their rock.  
  
  
  
He blinked, looking down at her. “I think this is the first time I’ve heard you say my name without the suffix. What’s up?”  
  
  
  
“How do we know that that’s the only Youma in the area?” she asked seriously. “The last time we fought one it blinded you. What if that happens again?”  
  
  
  
Kirito frowned, “I think that might have been a glitch…” he sighed, “But you are right, [Princess], we need to be careful.”  
  
  
  
Asuna looked at him a moment. She had allowed him to call her that, but why had he called her [Princess] instead of hime?  
  
  
  
"Yes, Keywords do throw me a bit. That weird tingle..." Kirito mused.  
  
  
  
Asuna shook her head. "Later. We should plan now."  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, “Anything from your memories?”  
  
  
  
“She knows how to fight them, but never got the chance to, I believe…” Asuna looked back at the Youma. "She didn't exactly sit down and learn the minutae of the society and organization. What she learned, it was in combat, and she never sat down and dissected it all. One of the ways _she_ is not _me_."  
  
  
  
Kirito smiled, “Then we’ll have to set aside some time and do just that.” Why had he been compelled to call her that when he knew she hated it? It didn’t matter if they believed his brother and Pluto or not. She _hated_ it.  
  
  
  
“Perhaps we’ll have time once we get to the next village.” Asuna gave him a smile. “You are the only one who will ever be allowed to call me that. Everyone else is going to get smacked.”  
  
  
  
He simply smiled at that. “Or your rapier in their face?” he asked, knowing that her face would go bright red and that she wouldn’t answer.  
  
  
  
They went back to observing the Youma.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Yuuna bowed to Luna and Silica when they got to Urbus. “Thank you so much for helping me get through the dungeon. I was sure that I was going to die there.”  
  
  
  
“Mah, that’s no problem, Yuuna.” Silica grinned. “Luna and I had fun doing so.”  
  
  
  
Luna nodded. “We were happy to help. Here, why don’t you add us to your Friend List so that we can stay in touch?”  
  
  
  
Yuuna’s face lit up, “Sure. I’d love that.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes narrowed, “Well, we aren’t going to be moving at all if we don’t fight that Youma…”  
  
  
  
“Would you like to fight it, Asuna-hime, or would you rather I do it again?” Kirito asked from behind her. They’d already been here half an hour, far too long.  
  
  
  
“I think I want to try.” She replied, slowly pulling her rapier from its sheath.  
  
  
  
“Alright, but if anything happens, I’m going to step in.” Kirito told her in a voice that wouldn’t allow for any argument.  
  
  
  
“As if I’d expect you to do anything else, [Commander]” she smirked, catching his flinch. “Keywords.”  
  
  
  
“I think I will hate those damned keywords…” Kirito muttered as Asuna slowly stepped out of their hiding place.  
  
  
  
Asuna lowered her stance and lunged. She took the Youma by surprise, but she wasn’t quite strong enough to kill it in one hit.  
  
  
  
She gasped as the Youma took advantage of the post motion freeze that all Sword Skills had to get her across the back, blinding her.  
  
  
  
“Move!” she heard Kirito shout, and she hit the ground, rolling away from the mob.  
  
  
  
Kirito came down hard on the Youma with a [Slant], the two move sword skill killing the mob where Asuna’s [Linear] was not precise enough. Sometimes power did win over precision.  
  
  
  
Once the mob shattered, he sheathed his sword and turned to where Asuna had stopped. “Can you see anything, Asuna?” he asked, walking to her side and dropping to a crouch next to her.  
  
  
  
“I can’t.” She replied, “Why can’t I?”  
  
  
  
“That was your first time getting hit by one of those things?” He put a hand over one of hers. He continued when she nodded in agreement. “Then I’d say that that’s an effect they have on first-time encounters. Though why that still happened to me on the fifth floor I couldn’t tell you.”  
  
  
  
“I don’t like the thought of that.” Asuna grumbled as he helped her to sit up. “That means that we’ll lose who knows how many Solo Players to the Youma Mobs…”  
  
  
  
She yelped when he picked her up. “We’d best not stay here.” He said when she smacked his shoulder.  
  
  
  
“Warn me the next time you’re going to pick me up!” she mumbled into his shoulder, hiding her blush.  



	26. Troubles on Venus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venus is a really hot place.

It didn’t take the five minutes the blindness debuff lasted for Kirito to find the next village they needed to visit, [Phalavattāda Bhūmi]. “I didn’t realize that we were so close to our goal.” He marveled.  
  
  
  
“Are we in a [Safe Zone] yet?” Asuna demanded to know from his back.  
  
  
  
“Yes, do you want me to put you down or would you prefer I carry you to an Inn?” Kirito asked playfully.  
  
  
  
“Put me down!” she snapped, glaring up at him with currently sightless eyes.  
  
  
  
He sighed, “As you wish, [Princess].” Kirito set Asuna gently on her feet. That tingle had shot up his spine again. It wasn’t something he enjoyed at all.  
  
  
  
She turned her back to him in irritation. “I didn’t use a Keyword.” She grumbled as she kept her eyes closed since she was still blind.  
  
  
  
“It was your tone, Asuna-hime.” Kirito looked away. What was going on between them? Why had he felt the need to address her as such? He was her mentor, her partner, not her subordinate.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Malachite snarled as he killed another of the Moon Sand Worms that he hated so much. The only good thing about them was that they gave huge amounts of EXP. once all the mobs were gone, he turned to the Player he’d come to recruit. “Are you Red Eyed Xaxa?” he asked.  
  
  
  
“What of it?” the younger man growled, his glowing red eyes appearing out of a skull mask from the inside of a hood.  
  
  
  
“I’ve got an offer for you,” Malachite smirked. “You like playing the villain right?” He asked, simply to confirm that he was talking to the right person.  
  
  
  
Xaxa nodded slowly, “What of it?” he asked as he gave the man a suspicious look. “The so called [Commander] has made it quite clear how he feels about Players like me. Better to stick to thievery then have one of my arms cut off if he catches me trying to [Kill] another Player.” he sneered. “I may or may not believe what Kayaba said on [Day One]. But as long as someone like that Brat Kirito does, well, I can’t really have any fun.”  
  
  
  
Malachite smirked maliciously, “What would you say if I asked if you wanted to help me get rid of him?” He tempted the teen.  
  
  
  
“I’d ask where I could sign up.” Xaxa replied with a bloodthirsty smirk.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Adonis?” the NPC asked, “He passed through here maybe two weeks ago.”  
  
  
  
Kirito groaned his shoulders slumping, “We’re really that far behind him?” Not that it was that surprising, but these kinds of quests could be quite frustrating.  
  
  
  
“Looks like,” Asuna agreed, frowning thoughtfully. “I’m not even sure if he’s on this floor.” She predicted.  
  
  
  
“...And I think you just jinxed us,” Kirito deadpanned, smirking playfully.  
  
  
  
Asuna squeaked, “I’m sorry!” She had not meant to.  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled as he pulled his partner close, “I’m kidding. I’m actually hoping for another quest that spans several floors.” He was looking forward to this.  
  
  
  
Asuna blushed as she leaned into his warm side. “How many floors do you think it will last?” She relaxed, glad that he wasn’t at all angry at her. She was kind of looking forward to another quest like the [Elvan War Campaign] herself.  
  
  
  
“Three if we are lucky.” Kirito grinned.  
  
  
  
“You really liked the [Elven War Campaign]...” Asuna poked his arm playfully.  
  
  
  
“Of course I did, and so did you if I remember correctly.” Kirito grinned, catching her hand. “This hand is mine now.” He pulled her hand close, holding it in a firm, gentle grip that wouldn’t hurt.  
  
  
  
“No fair! Give my hand back!” Asuna tugged on her arm lightly, laughing quietly.  
  
  
  
Another NPC chuckled, “I heard you were looking for Adonis?”  
  
  
  
“We are,” Asuna agreed. She was hopeful that they might get some useful information out of this place, like, where they had to go next.  
  
  
  
“Last I heard he was headed to [Phalavattate].” The NPC replied after a moment of thought.  
  
  
  
“Thank you,” Asuna chirped, she was very happy to know where they were going. At least they weren’t expected to wander aimlessly while they looked for clues. In this heat, it would be counterproductive.  
  
  
  
Kirito opened his [Book] as their quest log updated to check what they had to do next. “Well, we know what village we are going to, but do we know where that is?” He asked, looking over his Menu screen to look at his partner.  
  
  
  
Asuna shook her head, “I don’t think so. Maybe we should ask around?” She asked with a shrug.  
  
  
  
“That sounds like the best idea I’ve heard all day.” He gave her a grin. “I’ll get us a room.”  
  
  
  
“And I’ll ask around,” Asuna agreed.  
  
  
  
Kirito hesitated for just a moment before he pulled his partner closer and planted a gentle kiss on her cheek before he left.  
  
  
  
She turned, watching him leave with a smile and a light blush. “Now then, where should I start…?” Asuna mused as she began her journey down the boulevard.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Yuuna blew out a breath as she killed the last of the cow mobs in the area she’d been farming. “Ok, let’s see what level I am…” Opening her menu she noticed that she was almost level twelve. “I don’t think one more of those stupid cows will give me the EXP I need to get to the next level…” Unfortunately, that included the [Mad Cows]. She bit her lip before checking how many healing items she still had.  
  
  
  
“I’m close to town, so if I wanted to come back out I probably could…” she muttered as she did a silent count. She had enough to stay out even, but did she want to? “At the same time, I have enough to get back to town as well, should something go wrong. So I guess the question is if I want to stay out here and grind some more or head back to the Inn…” And those thrice damned primers…  
  
  
  
“I’m still not even halfway through the first one…” Yuuna sighed as she turned and headed back towards Urubus. “Maybe I should ask for help?” Why did the language have to be so hard?  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Luna and Silica had decided to base themselves out of Urubus while trying to find those materials that Luna needed. After saving Yuuna, they’d gotten her a room in the Inn they were staying in.  
  
  
  
Luna waved Yuuna over when the younger girl came into the tavern from where she was seated at the bar. “Well?”  
  
  
  
Yuuna huffed, “I didn’t gain the level I wanted, but I’m sure I’ll get it early tomorrow. I just wish I wasn’t having so much trouble with the language.” Her shoulders slumped as she sat down.  
  
  
  
Luna and Silica, who was seated on Luna’s other side, shared a glance, “Well,” Luna smiled, “If you show us the primer you’re using then maybe we can help you out.” She said as she waved the Bartender over.  
  
  
  
Silica nodded, “I’ve been meaning to crack one of those open myself.” She’d never seen a game with such a sophisticated language before so she was curious.  
  
  
  
“You’ll… really help me?” Yuuna asked in shock.  
  
  
  
“Of course,” Luna bought Yuuna a drink, “You’re our friend Yuuna, why wouldn’t we help you?” The adult of the trio smiled as she held the drink out for her friend.  
  
  
  
Silica nodded, “Yeah, I’m always ready to help a friend.” She didn’t have very many, not counting the two she was sitting with.  
  
  
  
“You two are the best,” Yuuna breathed as she took the drink from Luna.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Thank you. So the village is to the Southeast?” Asuna asked yet another NPC.  
  
  
  
“Yes,” the girl agreed. “It’s on the way to the [Pillar of Light] if I remember right.”  
  
  
  
Asuna ruffled the girl’s hair and left a Col coin in her hand. She didn’t need to pay the girl, but it felt right to do so. Asuna frowned as she gazed skyward. It was too late to head out; the sun would set in the next half hour. But she had time to get to their Inn before it got dark. Maybe she’d even have time to make her partner something for dinner.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s cheeks heated up at the thought of a warm meal she could share with her friend. She liked the idea very much.  
  
  
  
She opened her [Charm of Far Scribing] and sent her partner a message, asking what Inn they were staying in. She was only slightly concerned when she didn’t get a reply right away.  
  
  
  
“Hime, you worry too much.” Came from behind her, causing her to jump and reach for her rapier. Asuna only relaxed when she saw that it was Kirito grinning at her.  
  
  
  
“Kirito-kun, don’t do that.” she pouted, taking her hand off her sword. “What if we’d been out in the field? I could seriously hurt you.” She might be two levels below him, but that didn’t mean that her STR stat wasn’t impressive.  
  
  
  
“I know you wouldn’t do that Asuna.” Kirito reassured her, “And I’d like to think that my reflexes are good enough that I’d be able to dodge something like that.” He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.  
  
  
  
Asuna giggled, “I hope you’re right.” How silly of her, she should trust him more.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito sat in a chair in the tavern’s kitchen at a small table, reading another chapter of the fighting manual for his chosen sword and style. It was slowly getting harder to read and he was actually itching to open the first of four [Advanced Primers] that he’d bought to share with Asuna.  
  
  
  
He’d have to set aside some time to practice where he wasn’t fighting the mobs. He really should get back into the habit, shouldn’t he? He couldn’t do it now for obvious reasons. Asuna was cooking dinner after all. Simplified as the process was, it didn’t take hardly any time to cook anything, really.  
  
  
  
He pulled his sword from its sheath and grabbed one of the two sharpening stones he carried and began working on the dulling edge. He checked the edge and sighed, as he feared, he couldn’t fix the edge himself. “Going to have to find a Blacksmith… Maybe Liz would be willing?” he wondered with a smile. He put the sword to the side and picked the manual back up and picked up reading where he’d left off.  
  
  
  
Asuna brought a tray with their dinner out. “All finished. I hope you’re hungry Kirito-kun?”  
  
  
  
“I’m always hungry for your cooking,” he teased with a small smile.  
  
  
  
“Good, I made a lot.” she replied, carefully setting a plate before him.  
  
  
  
Kirito made sure to put his bookmark in place and shoved his training manual back into his [Book], followed by his sword with much more care. “This looks amazing, as usual.”  
  
  
  
Asuna giggled, trying to hide her faint blush. “Thanks.” She managed to reply. “I’ve been working really hard.” Her [Cooking] skill had just reached two hundred.  
  
  
  
“I can tell.” Kirito took a careful bite after Asuna had sat down. “Perfectly wonderful. As I have come to expect from my partner.”  
  
  
  
Asuna was able to hide the hitch in her breathing. Their game between them, really wasn’t a game… But she’d wait for him to be ready before she did anything. And if it blew up on them? Even better, because Asuna didn’t want anyone else. “You are too nice Kirito-kun, my cooking skill is barely two hundred…” she mumbled, blushing.  
  
  
  
“I wouldn’t say it if it weren’t true.” Kirito gave her another smile. “You really are a wonderful cook.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna waited until he was fast asleep before she sat up. “I don’t…” she smiled as she brushed his dark, soft hair out of his face. “You really know how to play my heartstrings… Don’t you? My Kirito-kun… I can see today’s reflected in each past tear… All of my love has yet to wake…” she whispered trying to stay with the slow melody her partner had always used, struggling for a moment, to remember the words. “...I know your strength is what I lack… And know that I’ve got yours. I have you to thank… for lighting up the dark…”  
  
  
  
She held the last note and let it fade, curling back into his side. She finally let herself fall asleep, content with the way she felt.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba paused in his efforts to clean up the two little A.Is that he had unknowingly created and turned to look at Cardinal. “Cardinal.”  
  
  
  
“Yes Master?” the AI also paused in her work to look up at her creator.  
  
  
  
“Did you feel that surge of magic?” The brunet brought up a list of Players that had active magic in the game. The magic felt familiar. It was something from Heathcliff’s memories...  
  
  
  
“I did Master, do you know who it was that it came from?” Cardinal asked curiously.  
  
  
  
“I think I just might.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Tilnel blinked when she noticed a slight glow from her charge’s reincarnation. She clearly saw the crescent moon on the NerveGear right where the center of her forehead was. “I wonder what you are declaring, my Princess?” the elf asked of the deserted room. She smiled, sitting back in her chair.  
  
  
  
She looked down when she got a message and tapped the holographic button. “Sister?” She read the message and opened a screen to send a reply.  
  
  
  
The night had been quiet so far and she knew that her sister was in another hospital, either spending time with Captain Heathcliff, or watching over the new Commander, his young brother. Nothing seemed out of place, but both sisters were ready for anything.  
  
  
  
Just because Tilnel had chosen to be a medic didn’t mean that she wasn’t proficient with a blade after all.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The enormous doors leading to the boss room of floor twelve creaked open and an NPC wobbled out, making sure to slam the doors shut again. Putting a hand to the doors, she breathed… something. The mark of her house glowed as she let herself slide to the floor, flinching away as something on the other side of the door crashed into it several times. “The recruits had better be up to snuff, Captain Heathcliff…” she muttered, one hand on her sword, [Guardian of the Princess], as she leaned against the pillar next to her…  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Um, excuse me!” Lux ran after the redhead that she’d met when Kirito had brought her back to the first floor.  
  
  
  
Beryl turned, “Oh, hi. I wasn’t expecting to meet you up here. Lux, right?”  
  
  
  
Lux nodded, “And you’re Beryl.”  
  
  
  
“So, what did you need, Lux?” Beryl asked.  
  
  
  
“Could I possibly travel with you for a while?” Lux enquired. “I haven’t been able to find Kirito-sama or Asuna-sama in a while…”  
  
  
  
“I don’t think the [Commander] understands just how much the regular Clearers are starting to respect him,” Beryl mused in amusement. “Discounting those idiots Lind and Kibaou of course. I don’t see why you can’t come with me for a bit.”  
  
  
  
Thanks!” Lux gave her a grin. “So, we’re on Venus?”  
  
  
  
“Yes,” Beryl turned back to the path, “I’m headed to town to meet with Klein and his guild before we go see the Princess Venus NPC.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Sachi almost yelped as a [Mad Cow] charged her. She thrust her spear forward in a panic. Somehow, she got a critical hit on the [Mad Cow], killing it. She’d struck it in the center of the head.  
  
  
  
“Nice one Sachi!” Keita called from where he’d just finished off his own mob. “You’re finally getting the hang of this.”  
  
  
  
“Thanks Keita,” Sachi mumbled, a tiny, proud smile on her face. So then, why did her weapon feel wrong, and why was she still so scared?  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
It took Kirito and Asuna three hours to make it to the village they had been told about. [Phalavattate] was by far the smallest of the villages they’d yet to visit. By now they were tired because it was so hot. “Well,” Kirito breathed as they sat on a bench just inside the [Safe Zone]. “At least no other floors are likely to be this hot…”  
  
  
  
“That’s true. I hate this floor, but not quite as much as floor ten…” Asuna agreed. “And that’s only because of how hot this place is.”  
  
  
  
“So, you want to search for information on Adonis, or would you rather relax where it’s nice and cool, in an Inn room with an attached bath or bathhouse?” Kirito asked after a moment of silence.  
  
  
  
“A bath sounds extremely tempting.” Asuna leaned against him, “Especially if it’s cold.”  
  
  
  
He chuckled, “Then let’s go find us a place with a bath.” Typical Asuna, but he wouldn’t have her any other way. And in this case he completely agreed with her.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Argo checked her notes as she went from the third floor to the twelfth. She was slowly gathering every piece of information she could on the background and lore of Aincrad. The picture it was creating, she wasn’t sure she liked what she was seeing.  
  
  
  
“A great disaster is approaching,” she recited from memory. “Without our Princess, the empire will surely fall. Good luck finding her, for she is the only hope we have…” Argo sniffed, “As if.”  
  
  
  
She knew that Heathcliff thought her friend A-chan was this missing Princess, but Argo didn’t believe it for an instant. But she supposed it didn’t matter. Argo, [The Rat], [Spymaster] had more to do.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Oh god it’s hot!” Liz complained as soon as she and her assistants materialized on the twelfth floor. “Is Kayaba trying to simulate the conditions on Venus?”  
  
  
  
“It wouldn’t surprise me,” Orlando groaned, “He’s sadistic and perfectionist enough to do it.”  
  
  
  
Just inside hearing range but hidden by the crowd, Kirito winced. While he might not be happy with his older brother, all the hate that the Players were directing at his brother, and the [Beta Testers] (even though there was now literally no difference between the [Beta] and Retail Players anymore) was disconcerting. That Kirito himself carried most of the hate didn’t help matters at all.  
  
  
  
He and Asuna had come back to [Haḷadi Śukra] because they had gathered all the information about where Adonis had gone on the floor. They were trying to decide what to do next. They’d found the Field Boss and the entrance for the Labyrinth but…  
  
  
  
Asuna started shooting him concerned glances, when she noticed his shoulders slumping. “Kirito-kun?”  
  
  
  
He turned to her. “I’m angry with my, with Kayaba, just like everyone else,” he breathed, “If for different reasons now. And I know I was asking for it when I made that speech on the first floor. But…” Kirito gazed at the crowd for a moment before returning his eyes to Asuna’s. “Is it wrong for me to want them all too just stop for a moment to marvel at the beautiful world my brother has managed to build for our enjoyment?”  
  
  
  
Asuna shook her head, giving his hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. “No, I don’t believe so. Because as deadly as SAO is, it’s not Kayaba’s fault it’s a [Death Game]. And even with our deaths having real world consequences, I think this is the most beautiful game I’ve seen. And I’ve watched my brother play quite a few.”  
  
  
  
“I’m sorry,” Kirito whispered.  
  
  
  
Asuna blinked, turning more fully to him, “What?”  
  
  
  
“I’m sorry I got you caught up in all of this, [Princess].” He wasn’t looking at her and he was miserable enough that he missed the hitch in her breathing. “I dragged you into this mess on the first floor…”  
  
  
  
Asuna stared at him for a moment, her eyes wide. Then her eyes narrowed and she stepped forward, smacking him over the head, hard enough to get a purple polygon. “Snap out of it, [Commander].” she barked angrily, “You didn’t drag me anywhere I wasn’t prepared to go.” She took a deep breath, “As you keep me from losing myself to those memories… I promise to keep you from getting depressed!”  
  
  
  
Asuna grabbed the collar of his long coat and hesitated. She wasn’t sure he was ready for this kind of escalation to their game. Heck she wasn’t even sure _she_ was. But, something needed to be done to snap him out of this mood. The smack she’d given him was usually enough, but in this case it hadn’t been, so… she pulled him down and kissed him hard.  
  
  
  
She felt him tense and then slowly relax before releasing him. “Come find me when you’re done moping.” she ordered, spinning on her heel and marching to their inn; leaving her partner standing there in wide eyed shock.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
It took several hours, of killing mobs in the nearby fields true, but Kirito eventually managed to get his head back on straight. Every time he thought of that kiss he went bright red, deeper than even the tomato shade. But eventually, he returned to their Inn room, where she was waiting. He opened the door silently and looked around. His eyes falling on her looking out the window, her back to him. He took a moment to admire the way her hair cascaded down her back like an auburn waterfall. “I’m sorry about earlier.” He apologied.  
  
  
  
She turned. “It’s alright; you were heading towards a breakdown anyway. I didn’t escalate too much, did I?” she stood from her seat and walked to his side, pulling him into the room and closing the door.  
  
  
  
“N-no,” Kirito blushed but did his best to meet her intense gaze. “You didn’t.” He reassured her.  
  
  
  
“Good, I’m glad I was able to catch you before it happened in the field, where it could have been fatal.” Asuna wrapped her arms around her partner’s shoulders and pulled him close, resting her head in the space under his chin, hiding a content smile. She’d been wanting to kiss him properly for a while now. “You missed dinner, but I’m not sure I should give you your portion…”  
  
  
  
“Please don’t withhold dinner.” Kirito begged.  
  
  
  
Asuna giggled, “Alright.” she led him to the table and pushed him into the second seat. Then she opened her [Book] and pulled out the basket holding their dinner. “I was kidding earlier, I haven’t eaten yet. And I’m not mean enough to make you watch me eat.”  
  
  
  
“You’re an angel Asuna-hime,” Kirito told her, taking the offered sandwich.  
  
  
  
“You’re welcome, Kirito-kun,” Asuna blushed brightly. Why was it that he could make her blush like that with a simple compliment?  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Cardinal paused in her debugging to check the feed showing her two of the most important players in the game. Though she could not do anything to make their lives in the death game easier, she was nonetheless quite fond of Asuna and her Master’s brother Kirito. She had finished debugging [Holy Sword] and was now attaching it to her Master’s player ID, to be obtained on floor fifteen. “Well now,” she muttered, watching Asuna kiss Kirito. “Isn’t this interesting?”  
  
  
  
She checked Kirito’s vitals. His heartbeat had sped up so much that had she not seen what was going on first, Cardinal would have believed that he was terrified of something. Was the [Commander] excited? Surprised? She was still learning from the players so she wasn’t quite sure.  
  
  
  
Cardinal smiled. “I wonder if I can get in on the betting…” she mused happily. It would already be writing on the wall, but Asuna and Kirito didn’t seem to understand just how deep their feelings were getting. She turned from the feed and back to her work, beginning the long task of debugging [Dual Blades]. She still wasn’t sure if her Master’s brother would meet all the qualifications that were set for the Skill to be obtained. But her Master was steadfast in his belief. So, she would adopt a wait and see stance. Her job, as far as the [Unique Skills] were concerned, was to hand them out to the players that met the qualifications for each one.  
  
  
  
So far, aside from her Master, the Princess, Persephone and the [Commander], she’d flagged two different players for [Shurikenjutsu], though it wouldn’t be assigned to anyone until it was debugged itself.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Johnny Black smiled to himself as he checked his spoils for the day. Being a thief was difficult, especially since what had happened on the fifth floor, but he was enjoying himself as much as he could. He always made sure that his victims would be able to get back to a [Safe Zone]. The more players there were the more marks he had after all.  
  
  
  
It irked him that he couldn’t PK but it was better, at least for the moment, to play by the rules laid down by that kid… There was no evidence either way after all. Even if he’d always enjoyed being the villain.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Once the sun had gone down and the floor had cooled off a bit, Kirito left the Inn room and set up to practice in the side yard of the Inn he and Asuna were staying in. Taking a deep breath, Kirito pulled his sword out and switched to a two handed grip. “Ok, how did this go again?” he asked himself before nodding.  
  
  
  
Slowly he began working through the exercises he remembered his grandfather teaching him and his little sister Suguha, taking the time to make sure that he had the footwork and stances right before slowly morphing his Kendo into the Kenjutsu, he was learning from the [Bastard Sword Manual] he’d been studying since the tenth floor.  
  
  
  
Kirito had already committed the basic stances depicted to memory. Now all he had to do was make sure he could actually do them correctly.  
  
  
  
He was growing quite frustrated when he spread his stance a little too far and nearly fell for a third time in a thirty minute time period. “Patience…” he told himself, remembering one of his grandfather’s many lectures, before and after he’d dropped Kendo in favor of his computer and gaming. “When learning something, anything new you have to take it slowly.” Kirito sat himself on the bench on the edge of the yard and pulled his manual out. “So, what am I doing wrong?”  
  
  
  
It was only then that he noticed what time it was. “How did it get to be this late?” Kirito wondered, “I had better get back to our room…” He didn’t want Asuna to worry about him.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Better?” Asuna asked after he closed the door behind him.  
  
  
  
“I worked out a lot of frustration I think.” Kirito replied with a shrug, wiping the virtual sweat from his brow. “Do you mind if I take the first bath?”  
  
  
  
“No.” Asuna looked up from the book she was reading; it was the manual for her rapier. “Just don’t take too long please, I want a bath too, you know.”  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled as he made his way to their bathroom.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Once inside, Kirito unequipped all his equipment and turned on the water to fill the bath. He still wasn’t sure why his brother had decided to design the bathrooms the Western way instead of doing them in the way they normally were, but he’d go with it. Perhaps the bathrooms in the real Castle Aincrad had been set up the same way?  
  
  
  
That done, he turned to look in the mirror and sighed. Could he do this? He needed to; there wasn’t any question of that. But he was just... Tired. Tired was a good word. He was tired of Kibaou and Lind’s constant fighting. He could handle everything else. But those two… they were like children fighting over a toy! The Raid Meetings were Serious Business!  
  
  
  
He turned the water off and got in, sighing as the heat of the water soothed the soreness from his back and arms. He grabbed the soap and got to work.  
  
  
  
It was sometimes too bad that the virtual body dried almost immediately in this game. Some days Kirito would have liked to let his hair drip dry. In this case it would have been a good way to keep cool, given the heat. Then again, this was also the floor were drying almost instantly made the most sense as well. It was unfortunate.  
  
  
  
He got out, equipped his sleeping attire and left the bathroom.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Bath’s free if you want it, Asuna.” Kirito told his partner upon emerging.  
  
  
  
“What are you going to do?” She asked, looking up at him.  
  
  
  
“I’m going to either crack open that [Advanced Primer] I bought for us to share.” he sat down on the single, large bed in their shared room. “Or, I’m going to try to read the next chapter in my manual.”  
  
  
  
“Not the Player’s Guide by Argo?” Asuna asked, standing up.  
  
  
  
“No, the [Bastard Sword Manual] I picked up on floor ten in [Princess Serenity’s] room.” Kirito replied.  
  
  
  
“I still find it surprising that your brother put kenjutsu manuals in this game…” She returned her manual to her [Mystic Tome] and headed toward the door of their bathroom. “I’ll be out soon.”  
  
  
  
“Take your time Asuna-hime, it’s not like I’m going to go anywhere.” Kirito replied lazily as he brought both books he’d mentioned out of his own [Mystic Tome].  
  
  
  
Asuna gave him a smile over her shoulder as the door closed behind her.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Heathcliff sighed as he left the designated [Game Master] area under the first floor. “If I want the guild that I plan to style after the Royal Guard in Heathcliff’s memories to step into the light soonish, I need to start recruiting.” He stretched slightly, heading for the Teleport Pad. “I’ll need to speak to Kirito and perhaps [The Rat] about who would work best and for players with good reputations…”  
  
  
  
He brought up the Menu and started composing a message to the players he wanted to meet with, taking great care to set the meeting to take place on a floor other than the first (because of the way his revealing the truth to his brother had gone); and the Tenth (Because that floor was just as painful for many, if for different reasons).  
  
  
  
Now the question remained on which of the ten, no, _nine_ , (a meeting like this should _not_ be held on the Front Lines, for _reasons_ ) floors should it be held on. There were rooms set aside for just this kind of meeting in the Royal Academy on the eleventh floor. There was also the Elven Castle on the ninth floor, but that was hard to get to unless you were partaking in the [Campaign] Quest line. Well actually, it was hard to get to no matter what was going on.  
  
  
  
No, floor eleven was the best floor to have this meeting on.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Godfree wiped the sweat from his brow after clearing the local area of mobs on the ninth floor in the [Elven Forest]. The [Two Handed Greatsword] felt best in his hands, and he felt like they were light enough that he might be able to wield the shorter ones with one hand, should the system allow it. Not that he thought it would.  
  
  
  
He checked his level: eighteen. He’d be getting another Skill Slot soon, but he wasn’t sure what Skill to choose. He had [Two Handed Great Sword], [Parry], [Extended Weight Limit], and [Heavy Metal Armor]. Perhaps he should invest in [Searching], [Hiding], or maybe [Battle Healing] next? He had a while still to decide so, it wasn’t like he had to make up his mind right this instant.  
  
  
  
He had several hours of serious grinding ahead of him before he had to put some serious thought into it so he wasn’t worried about it.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Griselda sighed as she sat heavily in her chair. “Well, I think that went well, what about you, Grimlock?”  
  
  
  
Grimlock shook his head. “We certainly could have done worse.”  
  
  
  
“Thank you for not saying that before, Grimlock.” Schmitt deadpanned.  
  
  
  
Grimlock rolled his eyes, looking to the last two of the party, “What about the two of you?” He crossed his arms.  
  
  
  
Caynz chuckled, “I don’t think we should take on the guild quest yet.”  
  
  
  
The last member, Yoruko nodded. “We did well against the spiders, but I think we should have a few more levels before we go after that miniboss.”  
  
  
  
“And you three?” Griselda asked, turning to the three players who had so far been silent. “What say you?”  
  
  
  
The three shared a look. The one in the middle sighed, pulling her hood down. “The best idea I’ve heard all day has been to wait.” She had dark brown eyes and had dyed her hair a bright green.  
  
  
  
“Are you sure, Merida?” asked the one on her right.  
  
  
  
“Yes, Ran, I’m sure.” Merida sighed, leaning back into the sofa.  
  
  
  
The last one chuckled, “I think we’ll be ready to face that damned spider sometime tomorrow or the day after.” The woman snickered, “I heard that [Leader] took the thing on with just one partner while escorting an NPC. But then, what else would you expect from our [Leader]?”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kibaou growled as he watched his guild train. “That damned [Beater]; he’s always in the spotlight!” He threw his copy of ‘The Daily Argo’ to the ground. “It’s bad enough that he made me look bad in the last Raid meeting!”  
  
  
  
He couldn’t even get the proper enjoyment out of the fact that the kid had done the same to Lind. Kibaou sighed, forcing himself to look at things more calmly. There had to be a way to one up the kid…  
  
  
  
“Hey Boss.” It was Joe, “Any ideas what we are going to do?” the man wiped sweat from his brow.  
  
  
  
“I don’t know yet, Joe.” Kibaou grumbled looking thoughtful. He’d seen the kid’s display of power and resolve when he was dealing with that one player. That incident showed that the boy not only knew the art of intimidation, but also had the power and potential will to back up and carry out his threats. It was too risky, and for all that he wanted to do something _right_ _now_ to take that [Beater] down a peg, he knew it was best to wait.  
  
  
  
Unfortunately, the kid had repeatedly saved his skin, despite everything. And because of this, Kibaou was having a really hard time generating hate for the kid now, he just wasn’t feeling it anymore. That didn’t mean he’d get any less satisfaction at beating the [Beater] at his own game.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Lind sighed as he sat at the head of the table in the Inn he’d commandeered for his Guild. Having it be pointed out _by a kid_ , that he was being childish and making himself look bad stung. It wasn’t even that he _disliked_ the said fourteen-year-old! He just didn’t think the kid should be putting himself in danger the way he was.  
  
  
  
He ran his fingers through his blue hair distractedly. He’d been Captain in the JGSDF before he’d been honorably discharged when his left kneecap had been shattered in Iraq going to the aid of an American Ally against one of the local Terrorist Groups. He hadn’t gone a single step since without pain. But he’d do it all over again. Because Brian had been, and still was, a good friend. But that had been the end of his ten year career, He couldn’t really believe that it had already been five years ago? How time flew...  
  
  
  
When he’d learned about Sword Art Online, he’d been unsure of the untested NerveGear. But Brian, good ol’ Brian, who could talk anyone into anything, had told him to go for it. Lind was just glad that his friend had been reassigned back to the U.S. before SAO had come out, otherwise his friend would be stuck here too.  
  
  
  
Because they’d promised to play together.  
  
  
  
…Oh. Kirito reminded him of Brian. So no, he couldn’t bring himself to hate Kirito. In fact, he’d been very amused by the way Kirito had been able to shut Kibaou and himself down on the tenth floor during the Raid meeting. The kid hadn’t raised his voice _once_! He’d never seen _anyone_ do _that_ before. His Drill Instructors had always raised their voices.  
  
  
  
But, Kirito was a kid, he shouldn’t be up here fighting for his life. He, and Asuna, should be down on the lower floors enjoying themselves where the danger was less. Not that the lower floors were any less deadly.  
  
  
  
“Hey, Boss?” Lind looked up to see Shivata, one of his old squad mates. “Still thinking about the Kid that seems to somehow have been put in charge?”  
  
  
  
Lind snorted, smiling, “It’s not that I hate him, you know that.” He gestured for his old friend to sit. “Kirito has talent, but he’s maybe fifteen at the oldest.”  
  
  
  
“Yeah, kids like him and his partner don’t belong up here.” Shivata agreed. “It wouldn’t be a problem if he were older, right?”  
  
  
  
“No,” Lind agreed. “It would not be. I’d treat him more like I do Kibaou, the unruly, if talented, Cadet...” He paused, thinking of something. “Hey, Shivata?”  
  
  
  
“Yes Boss?” the slightly younger man asked.  
  
  
  
“When we gain access to [Recording Crystals] or whatever will allow us to save video here, I want you to get a recording of the next time Kirito picks Kibaou and I apart.” Lind grinned at his friend’s bemused expression.  
  
  
  
“And, uh, why do you want me to do that?” Shivata asked in confusion. He wasn’t sure he was following his friend’s thought process.  
  
  
  
“So we can show our old Drill Instructor of course!” Lind snickered, “Anyone who can pull off what the Kid did, deserves to be respected. And I don’t know about you,” his grin widened. “But _I_ would love to see our [Commander] stare down some of the more outspoken Cadets in training…”  
  
  
  
Shivata started smiling too. “That would be quite a sight, wouldn’t it?” He agreed in amusement.  



	27. Preparations For a Raid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Preparing for [Boss Fights] can uncover surprises.

  
“So, this is where the Boss Room is,” Asuna mused as she and Kirito turned a corner in the Labyrinth. At the end of the hall were two huge set of doors that they had become familiar with. A Boss was always behind this set that went from floor to ceiling.  
  
  
  
“Yes,” Kirito looked up from his map and noticed something out of place; the figure leaning against a pillar. “Is that an NPC or a Player?”  
  
  
  
Asuna turned to look, her eyes widening, “What is a person doing here?”  
  
  
  
“Well, we should find out shouldn’t we, before a scouting party does something stupid.” Kirito started walking towards the figure. It took him a moment to recognize her because her uniform was different, but… “Senshi Venus?”  
  
  
  
Venus looked up, “I take it you are two of Heathcliff’s Cadets?” She struggled to say, her breathing was slightly uneven.  
  
  
  
“I suppose you could call us that,” Kirito agreed, “He chose me to be [Commander] but I’m not at all comfortable with that…”  
  
  
  
“No one really is when they are first chosen,” Venus gave him an encouraging smile. “In fact, Introverts like yourself are picked about half the time.” She flinched almost unnoticeably when he touched her shoulder.  
  
  
  
Half the time? What did that mean? He wondered. “Are you all right?”  
  
  
  
“This is nothing.” Venus replied, turning to Asuna she noticed the look of confusion. “What is it?”  
  
  
  
Asuna bit her lit, “Something is just… off about the way you look to me. I think I know why but…” The girl shook her head, “Maybe I should not have said anything.”  
  
  
  
Venus looked up at her and then she seemed to freeze for a moment before breaking free. “No, [Princess], I’m glad you said something.” For a moment, just one moment, her speech sounded as organic as Kizmel's had, down on the floors where the [Dark Elves] lived.  
  
  
  
Asuna flinched, “I’m not… I’m not…” She tried to deny. But every day it was getting harder. The nights were getting longer, and she was increasingly surprised that she hadn’t woken with her partner asking if she’d had yet another nightmare since that first day. She’d woken him every time it happened. Sometimes they’d go grind for EXP, or do a night time quest. Those were useful when you couldn’t fall back to sleep. “Don’t call me that Venus.” Maybe it was because they weren’t… Weren’t what? Asuna honestly did not know.  
  
  
  
Since that first dream, they’d been either really strange, or really dark. With a few dreams centering around floors higher, way higher than the one they were currently on. She’d seen mobs and bosses and quests and fights, all gone wrong. Not to the point of being lethal, but that didn’t help one bit. Some of those, especially the dreams with boss fights terrified her to the point of waking in a cold sweat.  
  
  
  
And Kirito, wonderful, wonderful Kirito, had coaxed her into talking about it all. Had kept her from going crazy and losing herself to them. She _still_ hated being called [Princess]. She wasn’t one anymore. She had _never_ been one.  
  
  
  


* * *

 

Persephone and Hades appeared on the Teleport Pad in the middle of [Haḷadi Śukra] and looked around, “…Are we on Venus?”

 

 

Hades gave a snort and nudged his master forward.

 

 

Persephone looked up at the [Thestral], “Right, we need to get going. I have to meet with Beryl and the rest about joining the Assault Team on a more regular basis.” She started towards the Inn Beryl had told her they’d be waiting.

 

 

Hades tossed his head before following his Master obediently.

 

 

Persephone giggled.

 

 

* * *

 

Ookami did a fist pump as she checked her menu. She was now level twelve, which meant that she now had four Skill Slots, one of which was waiting for her to fill with something. She had [Claws], [Sneaking], and [Searching] and she knew exactly which Skill she was going to pick next: [Hiding].

 

 

Her friend Phila was going for the same kind of build, though Phila had chosen to use a [Short Sword] instead of [Claws]. But that was ok, Phila was three levels above Ookami and while being identical in build at least for a little could have been fun…

 

 

No, it was best not to troll other players like that in a [Death Game]. “Next slot opens up at level twenty,” Phila spoke up as they headed back to town. “Any ideas what you want your fifth skill to be?”

 

 

Ookami pursed her lips. “Perhaps [Acrobatics] or a secondary [Weapon Skill].”

 

 

“What kind of weapon were you thinking about?” Phila asked playfully, pulling out her copy of ‘Argo’s Guide to Sword Art Online’s Weapons’.

 

 

“Not anything in particular, no…” Ookami replied slowly. “Why, what kind of weapon were you thinking of?” she turned to the best friend she’d had since the game began. “Surely you have something in mind?”

 

 

Phila smirked, “You remember that really old game series, Assassin’s Creed?” She asked.

 

 

“What about Assassin’s Creed?” Ookami prompted, not understanding how that classic game had anything to do with their current situation. “Assassin’s Creed was Awesome.”

 

 

“You remember the Cane Sword that had a scythe right?” Phila strung her companion along. I was thinking I’d add [Scythe] if the [Skill] is part of the set.” She giggled, “Can you imagine cutting through a horde of mobs using something like that? It would be _so_ cool…”

 

 

Ookami rolled her eyes, “Yes, I already know you’re a weapon’s whore. I’m surprised that you didn’t call yourself Ruby Rose!” She made a dig at her friend’s fascination with that very popular old American Anime.

 

 

Phila rolled her eyes in return. “There are no guns in this game, or magic. If this had been a shooting game, I might have.” She smirked striking a pose the named character’s partner would have taken, continuing in the same haughty tone the white haired girl would have used. “Crescent Rose or bust.”

 

 

Ookami’s eyes narrowed, “Gambol Shroud or nothing!”

 

 

For a few beats, the two friends stood there, glaring playfully at each other before breaking down into giggles and continued on to [Taft] on the eleventh floor.

 

 

* * *

 

Ashley sighed as she wiped the sweat from her brow. It had taken her a long time to get her [Tailoring] to three hundred, but her [Staff] skill was sorely lacking because she didn’t want to leave the [Safe Zone]. “I think that’s enough of leveling my [Tailoring] skill today… Perhaps I should go out to grind the trash mobs for EXP?”

 

 

Then again, learning the Language of SAO was fun. She was having a little trouble but she was nearly finished with the first of the basic [Primers]. Soon, Ashley knew she’d need the second [Primer]. “Might as well go pick one up before I decide to do anything else.” She sighed, getting up from her chair. “I need to make money some way.”

 

 

* * *

 

Pausing in her work to debug [Dual Blades], Cardinal turned her attention to the rest of the [Unique Skills] and began to put them in some kind of order. [Battoujutsu] had maybe three Players that she would have to keep an eye on. She didn’t like [Darkness Blade]. She didn’t like the thought of rewarding what amounted to murder. If Zoicite hadn’t forced her Master to turn off the respawn mechanic it would be a completely different matter, but he had. The very thought of the skill left a bad taste in the AI’s mouth. It didn’t matter that, according to her Master’s memories (which she was dubious about in the first place), [Darkness Blade] was meant to go to the person that would head the Black Ops division of the Army.

 

 

No Player was going to be right for that skill. She just knew it.

 

 

[Infinite Spear] She’d have to assign to someone other than Persephone. Cardinal shook her head as she opened a separate tab to scroll through the Players that used Assault Spears. How many should she [Flag] as a potential user? She still couldn’t quite believe that Master Heathcliff had gone to all the trouble of creating a new skill for Persephone instead of just telling her to debug [Infinite Spear], which would have been just as good an option. In fact, that was what Cardinal had originally been expecting.

 

 

She already had two Players in mind for [Shurikenjutsu].

 

 

Still, the question remained, which one should she debug first? Putting the question to one side, Cardinal took a moment to check on the two younger AI, Yui and Strea, to make sure they hadn’t started to compile more errors. Then it was time to get back to work.

 

 

* * *

 

Beryl grinned when she saw Klein wave to her from a large table in the back of the Tavern, near to the door to the kitchen. “Come on, Lux, let’s go sit down.”

 

 

Lux nodded in agreement, following the redhead. “OK.”

 

 

“Hey, Beryl-chan, who’s this?” Klein asked when the girls got close enough.

 

 

Beryl chuckled, “Klein, this is Lux; she’s also spent time with our [Commander] and Asuna-hime.”

 

 

“I’m pretty sure Asuna-sama would hurt you if she heard you calling her that, Beryl.” Lux commented, crossing her arms over her chest.

 

 

“What she doesn’t know or hear can’t hurt me.” Beryl shot back with a grin. Then she turned back to Klein, “So, I see you are missing four of your guild. Other than the four redeemed Youma, who are we waiting for?”

 

 

“We’re waiting for ‘Sephone-chi,” a voice trilled from behind almost caused Beryl to jump out of her skin.

 

 

Beryl caught Argo in a headlock. “How many times have I told you not to do that, Argo-chan?” the woman crooned.

 

 

“Beryl-nee, let go!” Argo protested, pulling at the older woman’s arms uselessly.

 

 

Lux snorted after a moment before she started to giggle.

 

 

“Alright Beryl, that’s enough,” Persephone scolded as she stopped in front of the table. “What did Argo do _this_ time?”

 

 

Klein shot up and pulled out a chair for Persephone to sit in, which she did with a, “Thank you, Klein.”

 

 

“It’s my pleasure Persephone.” Klein gave her a grin.

 

 

“Klein, she’s fifteen.” Beryl burst his bubble.

 

 

“What, I can’t be a gentleman?” He snarked back.

 

 

“Not when the lady is a teen.” Beryl shot back, letting Argo out of her grip.

 

 

* * *

 

“Oh, this is really hot…” Luna muttered as she, Yuuna and Silica appeared on the twelfth floor of Castle Aincrad, “Do you know where we are? Floor Ten was obviously the Moon…”

 

 

Silica looked thoughtful, “Well, Eleven was Mercury, I think?”

 

 

“Ok,” Yuuna frowned. “So, if that’s how it’s being played… then this would be… Venus?”

 

 

The three girls traded glances. “I don’t know about you two…” Luna looked out over the city. “But I hope that the boss room is found pronto and the boss killed as soon as possible.”

 

 

“Why…?” Yuuna’s eyes widened. “Oh, you mean that if the pattern continues then we should be getting back to Earth on the next floor!”

 

 

“Yes,” Silica agreed, “Let’s hope they do that soon. Shall we stay close to the city while we wait?”

 

 

Luna turned her gaze to Yuuna, “Our friend Yuuna here is highly under leveled for this floor so before we go anywhere at all we should top up on Healing items.” Luna paused to think about it, “Come to think about it, you and I are probably under leveled for this floor too. So that’s probably a really good idea…”

 

 

Yuuna nodded, “I’ll carry it all.” She’d just added [Extended Weight Limit] to her skill list so that was a good thing. She also had [Musical Instrument] to go with her [One Handed Mace]. She was almost to level twelve, so she had to pick out a new skill to add to her list. “Any ideas on what skill I should pick next?”

 

 

Luna frowned as she opened her menu to check the list of available skills. “What do you have right now?” She asked curiously. At level sixteen, she had [One Handed Dagger]. [Metal Refinement], [Accessory Creation], and [Searching].

 

 

Silica opened her menu to do the same, looking thoughtful. “I have [One Handed Short Sword], [Familiar Recovery] and [Familiar Communication] because of Pina, and [Acrobatics].”

 

 

Yuuna opened her menu as they moved to sit at a table outside a nearby cafe. “I have [Extended Weight Limit], [One Handed Mace], and [Musical Instrument].”

 

 

“Well, what do you want?” Luna asked, “Do you want Armor? There’s [Heavy Metal] and [Light Metal Armor]. Or you could go with [Leather Armor].”

 

 

“Or you could go for [Searching] and [Hiding] for your next two slots so that you can avoid fighting.” Silica suggested.

 

 

Yuuna blinked, “I think I’ll go with [Light Metal Armor] followed by… Silica, which would you suggest choosing first?”

 

 

“I’d go with [Searching] first, because some mobs don’t have eyes or use them as their main detection sense.” Silica gave her friend a reassuring smile. “I heard from Argo when I asked about skills that one of the [Beta Testers] died on the first day because he tried to hide from mobs that use smell and not sight.”

 

 

Yuuna and Luna winced, “What an idiot.” Luna muttered, “Any min-maxer knows that you go for [Searching] first if such a skill is available…”

 

 

Silica and Yuuna nodded in agreement. They felt no sympathy for the idiot.

 

 

* * *

 

“So, Persephone, did anything interesting happen with you while you were on your own?” Beryl asked once they were all seated at the table and had drinks in front of them.

 

 

“Well… I gained a familiar and another skill slot. Into which I put [Familiar Recovery].” Persephone grinned. “Next slot that opens up I’m going to go for [Familiar Communication].”

 

 

“Really?” Lux looked intrigued, “What mob did you tame?”

 

 

Persephone giggled, “Beryl, you remember that old book series by that British woman Rowling?”

 

 

“Ugh, don’t remind me, I thought the last two books were horrible. What about her?” Beryl gave the younger girl her full attention.

 

 

“Do you remember the horseless carriages?” Persephone grinned impishly.

 

 

“Those were pulled by thestrals.” Beryl deadpanned, giving Persephone a flat look. Then she blinked and her eyes widened in surprise. “Wait a minute, you mean…?”

 

 

Persephone nodded, “Um, there’s also that I had a strange thought while I was fighting the miniboss that gave me that skill I told you about Argo…”

 

 

“What kind of thought?” Klein asked urgently.

 

 

Persephone bit her lip, “The miniboss was a Hydra, and there weren’t any torches in the room…”

 

 

“Sonofa-,” Klein barely kept himself from cursing. “Those are weak to fire.”

 

 

“Exactly.” Persephone replied, “I hate it when Castle Aincrad does this to me!” she folded her arms on the table in front of her and put her head down. “And I don’t even understand why I thought that!”

 

 

Beryl’s hand froze just before she could grip the flagon in front of her. Her eyes met Klein’s and then Dynamm’s. What could this mean? She’d known that Persephone was likely a Reincarnation, but she still didn’t know who Persephone was.

 

 

But the way she said how she hated when Castle Aincrad threw curveballs like what she faced when fighting that hydra narrowed down the possibilities. Outside of its inhabitants, the only ones who would be familiar with it would be either from Saturn, members of the Empire’s military forces… or a Senshi.

 

 

It didn’t narrow down the possibilities to only a few, but it narrowed them down enough for her to have a suspicion of who Persephone might be a reincarnation of. One she hoped was wrong.

 

 

It was only a small possibility, true. But only one other outside of the known reincarnations who would have any familiarity with Castle Aincrad was at the forefront of Beryl’s mind. One who was currently unaccounted for.

 

 

* * *

 

Liz grinned up at Gilgamesh, “Well done, this [Breastplate] is quite well made.”

 

 

Gilgamesh grinned back. “The mats weren’t the best but…”

 

 

“Yeah, better quality stuff will be easier to find once we start getting closer to the [Top Floor].” Liz nodded, “But this is about as good as you can get for your [Heavy Metal Armor Forging] skill as is.” It was no secret that she had the highest skill as a [Blacksmith] other than maybe Nezha in the group. “Take a break Gil, you deserve it.”

 

 

“Should I maybe bring Lunch back?” the [Legend Brave] asked.

 

 

Liz thought about it for a moment and nodded, “That might be best. Make sure to bring a lot of water, we don’t want to risk dehydration, especially on this floor.”

 

 

While it might not cause a change in a player’s status or give a debuff. It would not be good to forget that going without water was a very bad thing. It was better to not have to relearn about dehydration the hard way by ending up in the hospital with it after they all got out of the game.

 

 

Gilgamesh nodded as he left.

 

 

“Yo, Liz!”

 

 

Lisbeth looked up, “Oh, hey Kirito, did you need something?” She asked the black clad player that was now standing in front of her.

 

 

“Could you repair my sword, I tried to make the repairs myself with that kit I told you Asuna and I found on the sixth floor, but…” He trailed off with a shrug.

 

 

“It turned out to not be simple repair work, which is the only thing those kits are good for.” Liz finished for him. “Alright, give it here.”

 

 

“Standard rate right?” Kirito asked, handing his sword over.

 

 

“That should do it,” Liz agreed, turning to give him a look, “Unless you want me to upgrade this thing again?”

 

 

“Nah, it’s good for the moment still, though I might ask for upgrades after the Raid Meeting in two days.” Kirito leaned against the pole of the stall as he watched her work.

 

 

“Who found the Boss room?” Liz asked as she placed the sword in the forge and let it heat up.

 

 

“Asuna-hime and I did, but there’s a complication, which is why I had Argo call for a Raid Meeting to take place.” Kirito replied. “A Sailor Venus NPC is right outside the door to the Boss Room and I would rather the first [Scouting Party] not try to kill her. We might not get the last pieces of information there are to get on the boss if that happens. And I’d rather not bet on her respawning. NPCs might ‘Get Better’ but.”

 

 

“Sailor Venus and the Princess NPCs might be special cases.” Liz nodded as she pulled the sword from the forge and began the long task of beating the sword back into useable condition.

 

 

“Yes.” Was Kirito’s simple reply. “I am so glad that we are long finished with the Tenth Floor…”

 

 

“Was it really that bad?” Liz looked up from her work as she put the blade back in the forge. “I had a lot of fun there.”

 

 

“You didn’t have to deal with Asuna-hime’s nightmares, _nightly_ , Liz.” Kirito huffed, “I’d do it again in a heartbeat. But I _like_ having a full eight hours of sleep and we were barely getting four.”

 

 

Liz gave him a concerned look as she pulled his sword back out and began hammering away again. “You are really rough on your equipment.” she told him bluntly. There was an aura around her friend’s crush, and Liz wasn’t sure how to react to it.

 

 

Liz was sure that had they met any other way, she’d have developed a crush on Kirito, just like her friend Asuna had. But the way he’d spoken when they’d met, had pushed him so far into the ‘Friend Zone’ that she’d never think of him as anything other than an annoying little brother at most.

 

 

She held up his sword to check that the edge and alignment were straight and waited as the sword cooled enough for her to file the edge to once again be razor sharp. “Tell Asuna to stop by and I’ll check her rapier.”

 

 

“Will do.” Kirito smirked. He was glad to have Liz as a friend. “That reminds me, when you’re done, can I add you to my [Friend List]?”

 

 

Liz gave him a bright grin. “Sure.”

 


	28. Venusian Finale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to leave Venus.

Kirito paced the room. “Why do I have to lead the meeting?” he asked in irritation.  
  
  
  
“Because you are the one who called it,” Asuna replied as she watched him. “And would you stop pacing?” She asked in annoyance. “You’re making me dizzy.” She sent him a displeased glare that otherwise had no heat to it.  
  
  
  
“I can’t help it.” Kirito growled, spinning to face her, meeting her gaze with his own. “You know that I can’t handle the attention very well!”  
  
  
  
“Well then,” Asuna stepped forward and pulled something out of her inventory, “It’s a good thing I’ve finished repairing your scarf then, isn’t it?” It was a familiar, grey strip of fabric, pristine as the day she’d given it to him, missing all the evidence of the wear and tear that it had been put through since.  
  
  
  
He blinked, momentarily speechless. “So that’s where that went…” He’d noticed that it had gone missing...  
  
  
  
“It was looking rather ragged.” Asuna told him as she looped it around his throat. “I figured that I should fix it before it got destroyed.” She gave him a teasing grin. “It makes you look rather professional.” She pulled the fabric into place and smoothed it out so that their combined symbol, the white Crescent Moon in front of a Solar Eclipse fell to rest without a crease over the left side of his chest, where his heart was in his real body.  
  
  
  
Kirito blushed brightly, “A-Asuna...” he breathed. When had she gotten so close? Why was her proximity even affecting him? They always cuddled close when relaxing or falling asleep...  
  
  
  
Asuna seemed to purr, understanding what he wanted to say but could not because he was well and truly tongue tied. “You’re welcome. Now, we need to leave or we’ll be late.” She took a step back, to admire her work. Not only had his scarf been in need of repair, she’d been able to up the stats on it, but they were stats that only she could see. Why did she look like the cat that got the cream and canary both?  
  
  
  
Kirito let out a long breath as the scarf settled onto his shoulders and lifted the almost unbearable burden from them. It didn’t get rid of the burden, just made it easier to bare. He returned her smile much more easily. “You’re right, let’s go.” He took her hand and pulled her from the room.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
It didn’t take long to arrive at the Inn the meeting would take place inside of, but that would not have mattered to Kirito anyway. He still didn’t know what he was going to say. He had no plan of action they could take. He had no idea what to do. “I don’t know what to do, what to say.” He sighed in frustration.  
  
  
  
“Why did you call the meeting?” Asuna asked promptly, trying to help him put his thoughts in order.  
  
  
  
Kirito bit his lip as he tried to remember. “I…” He took a deep calming breath as the moon on his scarf began to glow faintly. “I wanted to call the meeting before any other scouts could come across the NPC and come to the wrong conclusion. I especially don’t want to find out that she doesn’t respawn afterwards, only to find that information concerning the boss has been lost because of it.”  
  
  
  
“We could always ask your brother if that happens.” Asuna suggested softly. She knew that he was unlikely to agree, using his brother to mine information on much of anything before all other options were exhausted wasn’t fair. Not that Kayaba was likely to agree to tell them anything if they had other sources for the same information.  
  
  
  
“ _That_ would be cheating,” Kirito replied in a huff. “I might be a [Beater] but that is because I plan to beat the game. _Not_ because I cheat.” He crossed his arms over his chest. He didn’t glare at his partner like he wanted to because her suggestion was a perfectly valid one, and one that others would voice, if they knew that the [Game Master] was among them. Besides that, the thought of doing so left a bad taste in his mouth.  
  
  
  
“But that is an option if someone jumps the gun, right?” Asuna insisted, resisting the urge to flinch when she turned to look up into his displeased eyes.  
  
  
  
Kirito paused, “I suppose, if it’s the only choice we have…” He finally allowed as they finally came to the Inn where the meeting would take place.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Suguha yelped as she dove face first into the dirt outside of Arun, turning to glare at her friend, Kou, when she heard his quiet laughter.  
  
  
  
“You’re very good at flying,” he complimented after getting his laughter under control. “So why do you keep face planting, Leafa?” he asked while snickering at the thought of such a graceful flyer falling to the ground the way she continued to do so in.  
  
  
  
Suguha sat up, brushing the dirt from her face as she did so. “It’s because I enjoy flying so much that I forget about the damned [Flight Limit]!” She gave him a playful glare. “I finally feel like I fit in my skin!”  
  
  
  
Kou laughed again, very carefully ignoring the strangeness of her last comment.  
  
  
  
“Just wait until you get the hang of [Voluntary Flight] yourself!” Suguha shot back. She lunged at her friend and they got into a tickle war and roughhousing session.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Minako woke from her fitful nap to her smartphone ringing. “Aino.” she grumbled, swiping at the icon that would allow her to answer the call.  
  
  
  
“You don’t sound very good Minako, are you Ok, getting enough sleep?” the familiar voice on the other side asked in Japanese with a noticeable Italian accent.  
  
  
  
Minako blinked as she recognized the voice, coming more awake. “I’m alright Lila. You woke me from a nap is all. And before you ask, yes. I’m still having trouble with insomnia… and the nightmares…” She rubbed at her face and eyes tiredly as she sat up on the couch she crashed on in her parents’ house.  
  
  
  
“Well, if you need anything,” Lila replied, “I’ll be at the Embassy for the next month and a half.” She paused, “Have you had any luck finding that important person you were telling me about?”  
  
  
  
Minako chuckled weakly, “Yeah, she’s in Ami’s Hospital.”  
  
  
  
“Oh no, why is she there?” Lila asked in growing concern.  
  
  
  
“Because she got caught in the trap that Zoicite set up concerning Sword Art Online.” Minako rubbed her eyes again. “Are you already in the country? I would prefer not to talk about this over the phone, and the walls have ears so…” she trailed off, the seriousness of the situation not lost on either girl.  
  
  
  
“I arrived just this morning,” Lila’s smile could be heard in her voice. “How about you gather your other friends and we’ll meet for a late lunch?” She asked playfully, “Then maybe we can go visit this important friend of yours.” Lila suggested.  
  
  
  
“That, sounds like one of the best ideas I’ve heard in the last several _years_ , Lila. I’ll see you soon.” Minako hung up her phone and grinned despite her fatigue. One of her friends was in town! Maybe this would allow them to keep a better eye on all the SAO goers.  
  
  
  
Minako refused to call them victims. While it was true that they were caught in Zoicite’s trap, Captain Heathcliff was _training_ them. So they weren’t _victims_.  
  
  
  
Minako picked up her communicator, which thankfully doubled as a phone and chose the ‘conference call’ setting, which connected her to all the other communicators in the system, “Hey everyone, Lila’s in town and has offered to treat us all to lunch. What do you all think?”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Ami looked to her supervisor, “May I take this call?” she asked, holding her communicator tightly in one hand.  
  
  
  
The man gave her a nod. “If it’s Minako then you are free to do whatever she’s asking.”  
  
  
  
Ami gave him a big smile, “Thank you.” She opened her ‘phone’ to answer.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Makoto picked up hers, thankful that she was her own boss. “Sounds good, your friends are always welcome at my cafe.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Haruka got out of her car, having finished practice and waved to her sponsor as she flipped the ‘phone’ open. “Why couldn’t these damned things be more like smartphones?” she griped as she put it to her ear.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Michiru sighed in relief as she was finally allowed to take a break. She put down her violin and bow and dug the Senshi Phone out of her purse. The indicator said it was Minako calling. Michiru wondered what that crazy girl wanted.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Rei waved to her grandfather as she pulled out her phone. “I’ll tell you later Grandpa.” She said as she checked the indicator and then opened her phone to listen to Minako’s message.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Setsuna paused, “I suppose we’ll have to continue this later, Captain, I have a call waiting. I’m sure it’s Minako.”  
  
  
  
Kayaba waved her off, “Have a nice get together then, I’m going to go get lunch from the Cafeteria and have lunch with my brother.”  
  
  
  
Setsuna smiled; waving as she left the room, “Have a good day then.” she replied as she fished the phone out of her purse and flipped it open. “That sounds like a wonderful Idea Minako, where are we going to have our lunch date?”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Minako blushed at Setsuna’s question. “You know that Mako has offered up her cafe as the venue.”  
  
  
  
Setsuna laughed, “Is that so, then are you going to pick Lila up or should I?” Setsuna froze when she got an idea. “Actually, remember that story I told you about the Dicey Cafe? How about we go there instead?”  
  
  
  
“That actually might be a good idea… I think you’re closer,” Minako replied as she brushed her hair, getting the few tangles out. “I’ll see you and the others in a bit.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Setsuna smiled as she snapped her phone shut and headed for the Italian Embassy. Lila, like all of Minako’s other, non-Senshi friends was crazy. But she was good for a laugh, which was why all her other teammates put up with them.  
  
  
  
She took a moment to look back at the hospital where the [Consort] was being cared for. “Do your best Kirito, Asuna-hime.” She breathed, returning her attention to what she was supposed to be doing.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
She watched the Earth in the cold darkness of space, a soft, bittersweet smile on her face. It was lonely up here, but then, this place was a dying world without the royal blood walking the surface. “I wonder if you’ve figured it out yet, my dear?” she asked the silence of the void. “Good luck with your new fiancé, My daughter.” The specter whispered, closing her eyes in sorrow. “I wish I could be with you all…”  
  
  
  
A silent tear fell from her chin as she disappeared, leaving a lone, motionless body behind. She was determined to help them. Somehow.  
  
  
  
Thousands of kilometers below, an NPC in the only finished VRMMO froze for a moment and then continued on as if nothing had happened.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Daizen groaned as he checked his status screen. How much money had he made today? He casually put his [Two Handed Warhammer] away, his eyes on the drops he’d gotten. He was three thousand richer than he was this morning!  
  
  
  
He grinned greedily as he thought about how much col the items he didn’t need would net him. Satisfied with how much money he’d made in the last hour, Daizen took a moment to look around.  
  
  
  
Good, he’d cleared the area of mobs, that meant that he could check his skills. [Two Handed Warhammer] was now at three fifty. [Sales Negotiation] was at two hundred. [Purchase Negotiation] was at one ninety-five. And [Tools Appraisal] was at fifty, since that had been his latest choice. And, at level fifteen, he had five more levels to decide what he was going to get next. He was seriously considering [Heavy Metal Armor]. It wouldn’t do for him to get killed in his pursuit of riches, regardless of how real it was.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Uzala groaned in discomfort as she killed the last mob with her spear. “Is everyone else alright?” she called over in the sudden silence of the field. She turned to look over her party. They seemed to be in good enough health.  
  
  
  
Her eyes drifted up to where her party members were listed under her name. Fultz was in the yellow, but thankfully closer to half health. Muldar was about the same. Segro had slightly more health than that. She was glad of that because those three were Tanks. Sanza was closer to quarter-health but was getting better. Then there was Nautilus, who, like Sanza and herself was a damage dealer. He was also the only sword user in the party. Nautilus, lucky bastard, had somehow managed to stay the healthiest.  
  
  
  
“Choosing [Battle Healing] to put in our latest slot was the best idea you ever had Sanza,” Uzala complimented.  
  
  
  
“Well, I figured that if we wanted to be on the front lines eventually…” Sanza chuckled, resting her [Two Handed Greatsword] in the pocket of her shoulder.  
  
  
  
Segro, Muldar, and Fultz all gave the young woman proud grins.  
  
  
  
“[Battle Healing] is a must if we are to join the [Clearers].” Segro agreed. “Floor nine is fun, but if we want to catch up we should probably move on to Floor Ten. I’ve heard it’s a Moonscape.”  
  
  
  
Uzala nodded and looked at Nautilus, who seemed to have reservations about doing so, but wasn’t voicing them. She knew why, his fear was strong enough to make him hesitate in a fight, though he was getting better about it. She remembered just how afraid he was at the start, and how much persuasion it took to talk him into facing that fear.  
  
  
  
And getting him to actually fight took even more work, but she wasn’t going to criticize him for his fear and caution. Being afraid when you had very real reasons to be afraid wasn’t a bad thing here. It was letting that fear rule you and keep you from facing it that was. She was very proud of her friend for deciding to face his fear, especially since his goal was to be on the Front Lines, just like the rest of them.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Lila hugged Minako when she saw her old friend. “Those bags, what are you going to do about the bags under your eyes Mina? You look horrible.” She rubbed a thumb under Minako’s eyes after kissing the other girl’s cheeks in greeting.  
  
  
  
“That’s not my fault,” Minako sighed as she led her old Italian friend into the Dicey Cafe.  
  
  
  
“Oh Minako… you need to sleep more…” Lila frowned gently.  
  
  
  
“Tell that to my insomnia.” Minako shot back with a grateful smile as Lila held the door open for her. “Thank you, Lila.”  
  
  
  
Lila huffed, “I miss your energetic craziness.”  
  
  
  
“No you don’t.” Rei muttered, looking for a table or a booth big enough for them all to sit at.  
  
  
  
“Welcome to the Dicey Cafe,” they turned to see the proprietor standing behind the bar, a huge battle axe hanging from a couple of hooks on the wall behind her. “Feel free to push several tables together if you can’t find a single big enough. I’ll be right with you.”  
  
  
  
“Thank you, Madam Kathy,” Setsuna called cheerfully as she herded her younger friends to a couple of free tables near the bar. “Can I have some coffee?”  
  
  
  
Kathy chuckled, “I’ll get right on that.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Heathcliff slipped into the Inn five minutes before the meeting was supposed to start. He knew that while the Boss Room had been found, the Boss hadn’t been scouted yet. So he wasn’t sure why the meeting had been called, unless Kirito was going to set up the scouting himself?  
  
  
  
He found his brother in a private room on the second floor. “Kazu, a word if you please?”  
  
  
  
“What do you want, Aki?” Kirito asked, not moving his head from where it rested in his hands. “The meeting is in five minutes; surely your questions can wait?” The teen pleaded.  
  
  
  
“Why call the meeting instead of scouting the boss yourself?” Heathcliff asked gently.  
  
  
  
“Because there was an NPC by the door and there have _never_ been any NPCs in the Labyrinth.” Kirito mumbled tiredly.  
  
  
  
“They have been in dungeons, Kazu.” Heathcliff reminded his brother.  
  
  
  
“But never in the _Labyrinth_.” Kirito shot back. “I know we only made it to Floor Ten in the [Beta] brother. But…” He brushed his fingers through his hair and finally looked up. “I’m not sure what this means. Will Venus respawn if she’s accidently killed?”  
  
  
  
“Princess Venus is by the Boss Room door?” Heathcliff asked in surprise. Had one of the other devs done this? Had the NPC evolved into an AI like Yui and Strea had? Why were the NPCs not performing to his expectations?  
  
  
  
“No, _Senshi Venus_ , Brother.” Kirito replied, turning away. “Was she even supposed to be there?”  
  
  
  
“There was only supposed to be a Princess Venus NPC.” Heathcliff replied. “I didn’t program any NPCs to _be_ the Senshi. There are only supposed to be stories of them and what their abilities are supposed to be.”  
  
  
  
“Then what could be going on?” Kirito asked, talking more to himself than to his brother. “Could Cardinal be doing this?” He turned to give his brother a curious look.  
  
  
  
“I’ll ask when I next see her.” Heathcliff shook his head. “Are you prepared to conduct this Raid blind if you have to?”  
  
  
  
“With no scouting at all?” Kirito asked slumping against a wall. “If I have to, though it’s unlikely that I will be allowed to lead. Not that I mind. I don’t like being in charge.”  
  
  
  
“Kibaou and Lind are idiots.” Heathcliff countered, “You are a fine leader. You just need to be more confident in yourself.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna sighed from the archway, where she was listening to her partner arguing quietly with his brother.  
  
  
  
“I am also an introvert. I find being in large crowds to be quite draining.” Kirito snapped back as he walked through the archway. “I may have been the best choice in the [Beta] but I can’t handle being in a large group constantly!”  
  
  
  
“You seem to have no trouble with our [Princess].” Heathcliff said softly, following her partner out of the archway a minute later.  
  
  
  
Kirito gave Heathcliff a disbelieving look over his shoulder as he drew level with where Asuna had been waiting for him. “That is because Asuna-hime is just one person. And don’t call her that, she hates it.”  
  
  
  
Asuna smiled up at Kirito, “Finally ready, Kirito-kun?” she asked cheerfully.  
  
  
  
“I believe so.” Kirito replied, offering his arm to her. “Are you ready?”  
  
  
  
“Yes, I believe I am.” Gently, she laid her hand in the joint of his offered arm.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The background noise, the talks going on at each of the tavern’s packed tables quieted as Kirito, Asuna and Heathcliff entered from a side door and everyone turned their attention to the trio. “Heathcliff, go find a seat if you can, please.” Asuna whispered to her partner’s older brother.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff gave the pair a nod as he found a seat free at the bar.  
  
  
  
Asuna loosened her grip on Kirito’s arm and pulled away, quietly retreating to a nearby corner, just in case. This way, she’d be close enough to help if he needed it.  
  
  
  
Kirito sent her a thankful look before coughing quietly into his fist to clear his throat. “Yes, thank you for coming everyone.”  
  
  
  
“Get on with it already!” Kibaou snapped angrily. “Why did you call us all to [Phalavattāda Kaṇivegaḷu].” He stumbled over the name, completely mangling the pronunciation because Kibaou didn’t see the point in learning a totally made up language when it likely had nothing to do with clearing the game. “When we could be clearing the Labyrinth?”  
  
  
  
Kirito sent Kibaou an unnerving, silent glare. “Asuna and I found the Boss Room yesterday. But there is a slight complication.” He replied seriously.  
  
  
  
“Complication? Hah!” Kibaou snapped, “I bet you just want-”  
  
  
  
“Shut up Kibaou.” Lind hissed darkly. “He’d tell us if you would stop interrupting.”  
  
  
  
“Thank you, Lind.” Kirito didn’t even blink. “Asuna and I found an NPC outside the [Boss Room].” He pulled a screenshot from his quick menu pouch to pass around. “There has never been an NPC in the Labyrinth, not even in the [Beta Test]. My source also tells me that there is not supposed to be any NPC in the Labyrinth either.”  
  
  
  
Beryl leaned forward. “Who was it?”  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes flicked to the redhead then looked over the other forty or so players seated in the chairs and booths and the stools at the bar. “Senshi Venus.”  
  
  
  
The stunned silence only lasted as long as it took for Kibaou to find his wits. Then he burst out laughing. “You actually believe that?” he howled. Kibaou was so busy laughing that he didn’t notice Kirito’s sharp gaze at first.  
  
  
  
Kirito coughed quietly a second time, trying to get everyone’s attention back. He reached up, gripping his scarf in distress as Kibaou’s disbelieving laughter started a cascade of doubt. With each moment Kirito’s distress grew as he shot looks to his brother and partner that screamed his need of assistance.  
  
  
  
Asuna took a deep breath and closed her eyes, the slight glow to the white moon on the scarf intensifying.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff stood from his seat, glaring at the orange, spikey haired man. With a few swift motions, Heathcliff pulled his sword from its sheath and brought it into contact with his huge Tower Shield creating an almost deafening bang.  
  
  
  
“Thank you Heathcliff.” Kirito coughed again once everyone was silent. “As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted…” Kibaou shrunk back at the intensity of Kirito’s gaze. “I called you all here because of this irregularity in the game. Something about the [Death Game] has changed. While Asuna and I were speaking with this NPC, something in the Boss Room banged against the doors, causing them to bulge outward before returning to their normal shape...”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff’s eyes widened in incomprehension, no boss was supposed to be able to do that!  
  
  
  
“When Asuna and I tried to scout the boss ourselves, the NPC stopped us, saying that she could not allow us into the boss room before she had judged us ready.” Kirito continued, ignoring his brother’s subtle panic attack. “Not knowing if she will respawn or not should something go wrong, we decided that it was better to inform everyone and then decide on what steps should be taken. I do not know how likely it is we will have to fight this boss blind. Let’s just hope that we do not have to.”  
  
  
  
“Do you have any suspicions, [Commander]?” Persephone asked from a seat near Beryl.  
  
  
  
“Asuna and I agree that it’s likely that the Senshi Venus NPC has the information on the boss that we haven’t been able to find, as all the Boss Quests have been done and still there is information missing. We do not know the conditions that need to be met in order to obtain the information from her. So, I’m willing to take serious suggestions on what we should do to prepare for the worst case.” Kirito answered, turning his eyes to Persephone.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Good morning, [Princess],” Venus murmured, looking up at Asuna from where she rested against the wall. As Asuna and Kirito led the full Raid to the Boss Room Door.  
  
  
  
“What are the conditions for getting into the Boss Room?” Asuna asked.  
  
  
  
Senshi Venus pulled herself up with some difficulty, “You need to survive against me, one on one, for five minutes.”  
  
  
  
“Who does?” Kirito asked, a little more sharply than he intended.  
  
  
  
“Anyone who is a part of the Raid Team.” Venus replied softly.  
  
  
  
Kirito prepared to step forward when his partner’s voice stopped him. “Challenge accepted. But I’m not just going to _survive_ you Venus.” Asuna said, slowly pulling her rapier from its scabbard as she started walking towards the NPC. “I’m going to _beat_ you.”  
  
  
  
“Very well then.” Venus smirked, “Prove to me that you are indeed my missing [Princess].” She dared the girl.  
  
  
  
Venus stood straight and tall, her Bastard Sword at her side.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Asuna, she uses my kind of sword so expect her to fight similarly to the way I do. That includes [Sword Skills].”  
  
  
  
“She is an NPC, so she’s going to follow certain patterns,” Asuna agreed. “But where you are unpredictable, she won’t be. Unless her skill level is higher than yours.” she sidestepped Venus’ first attack easily enough. Asuna never once took her eyes off the young woman that had once been the Princess’ friend.  
  
  
  
Venus lunged again and Asuna danced out of the way, thrusting into the Senshi’s side. Venus, who had only been at half health to start with lost several pixels of health. It went on like that for the next several minutes with Asuna whittling down the NPC’s Health Bar until Venus shifted into the position to activate a [Sword Skill] that Kirito was quite fond of using.  
  
  
  
Asuna shifted in response, crouching. As Venus let the skill pull her along, Asuna pushed herself into the [Linear] she’d been charging. It knocked off the rest of Venus’s health.  
  
  
  
Venus froze, and then smiled, “You really are the [Princess], she was the only one to ever be able to beat me.” NPC Senshi Venus coughed weakly, “Here is what you need to know…”  



	29. Adonis and Atlantis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asuna hates everything about Atlantis.

Asuna pushed the door open with some effort and had her breath taken away at the rich, familiar beauty of green, green grass. “Well, we’re back on Earth for a floor it seems.” she said, turning to look at her partner as he came through the door a moment later. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”  
  
  
  
“Mmhm, quite.” Kirito agreed. “This is ancient Earth, I wonder if we’ll see some of the Roman and Greek architecture…” He mused.  
  
  
  
“Maybe we should look into buying a house on this floor later?” Asuna asked hopefully; her eyes bright, “The Romans and Greeks were magnificent builders.”  
  
  
  
“Maybe a vacation home,” Kirito allowed, “Although, that can’t stop us from taking a look at what’s available right now. Maybe we’ll even be able to see Atlantis.” He wondered if his brother had gone with what Atlantic looked like before or after [The Fall]…  
  
  
  
“You mean the civilization that was ancient during the Roman Empire?” Asuna breathed. She was surprised by the revelation, but wasn’t sure why. She should not have been surprised by this.  
  
  
  
“Well, why not? It’s said…” Kirito slowly looked around again. “Atlantis was supposed to exist as a contemporary of the Silver Empire we’ve been learning about in the Lore of SAO.” He pointed out. “So why wouldn’t we get to visit some of the city, if not all of it?”  
  
  
  
“The concentric rings of water and Earth… I bet it’s going to be absolutely beautiful!” Asuna almost squealed. Calming down, she gave it some thought. “Yeah, you’re right. I can’t wait.”  
  
  
  
“You’ve said that already,” Kirito chided in amusement.  
  
  
  
Asuna did the mature thing and stuck her tongue out at him playfully.  
  
  
  
“I guess that tongue is mine now then.” Kirito grinned teasingly, taking a step forward.  
  
  
  
Asuna yelped quietly, taking a step back before fleeing in the direction of [Vain Rāṣṭra], the main settlement of the floor. Which was modeled after Vain'gaḷu in the actual Castle Aincrad. Vain'gaḷu itself was representative of Atlantis’ wine country district.  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled as he hurried after his partner. He couldn’t wait to see what this floor had to offer! That wasn’t even counting the quests he wanted to look into. Their game, was quite fun.  
  
  
  
When Asuna crested the last hill, she came to an abrupt halt. The view from her vantage point was gorgeous. “Vain'gaḷu… No, that’s not going to be its name…” She murmured in thought.  
  
  
  
Kirito caught up a moment later, also getting lost in the view. “Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a peaceful place.”  
  
  
  
“I know, right?” Asuna turned to him, “And we get to be the first to visit!” There was excitement in her eyes.  
  
  
  
The beauty of Earth’s lost civilization wasn’t lost on either player.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Kou,” Suguha said from where she was hovering, “Ma wants to see the stream tomorrow. Is it ok if I bring her?”  
  
  
  
Kou shook his hair free of the dirt he’d just face planted into. “I don’t mind.” He replied, “She has every right to want to see how Kirito is doing.”  
  
  
  
“I’m glad you think so.” Suguha sat down on a nearby branch, “I’d be very put out with you if you’d said ‘no’.”  
  
  
  
Kou laughed as he popped his wings to try again. Suguha had been right; flying without help was the best thing ever.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The next morning, right after breakfast, Suguha pulled her mother out the door. “We need to get there as early as possible, Ma.” she explained. “Because I think you’ll _really_ want to see what antics Kazu gets up to with Asuna.”  
  
  
  
Midori rolled her eyes since her daughter couldn’t see, “We’ll see Sugu.” She replied dutifully.  
  
  
  
Suguha gave her mother a bright smile as the train came to their stop and pulled her mother off. “This way.” Suguha had been coming to visit Asuna so often that she was sure she’d be able to get here in her sleep now.  
  
  
  
Midori chuckled as she followed her daughter at a more leisurely pace. The older woman wouldn’t admit it, at least, not for a while. But watching Kazuto lie in his hospital bed and waste away was heartbreaking.  
  
  
  
Kazuto had been struggling to find his place in their family again since he’d stumbled across the fact that he was adopted four years ago. He’d always been willing to help around the house. He’d been quite eager, so he was strong; even if he wasn’t particularly athletic.  
  
  
  
Midori knew that her son was active, but watching his comatose body in that hospital bed made it hard to remember. Perhaps that was why Suguha had been coming here so often? Well, she’d get her answer soon enough.  
  
  
  
Suguha skipped up to the desk, “We’re here to visit Asuna.”  
  
  
  
“Good morning Sugu,” the volunteer at the desk greeted the teen as she pulled out two visitor passes. “I see you finally got around to telling your mother.”  
  
  
  
Suguha nodded, “Yep. But it wasn’t for me to tell.” She blushed in embarrassment.  
  
  
  
“I’m not scolding you,” the volunteer bopped her on the head gently, causing Suguha to laugh. “Anyway, Ami is going to be making her rounds sometime today so stick around alright? You know where Asuna’s room is.”  
  
  
  
“I always seem to miss Ami when she’s here…” Suguha pouted. “Come on Ma, it’s time to go see Asuna and Kirito in action!”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna activated the [Teleport Pad] as Kirito went to find an inn with a bath or attached bath house for them to stay in. By now, it was routine and positively mundane. And the only reason why Asuna was the one to open the gates was because she understood her partner’s need for being on his own.  
  
  
  
She also found large crowds to be draining, though it took a lot longer for her to be affected to the degree Kirito was. She understood why he preferred smaller groups. But he was getting better. Even if that hiccup in the Raid Meeting on the twelfth floor had been a painful reminder of just how awkward Kirito could be in his interaction with anyone outside of his small social group.  
  
  
  
Damn that Kibaou! Lind may not like Kirito either, but at least the Guild Master of the [Dragon Knight Brigade] knew when to keep his mouth shut. Thank goodness Heathcliff had managed to get everyone’s attention back on the importance of the information she and Kirito had discovered.  
  
  
  
Kirito had been getting more confident when dealing with larger groups of people too. Her partner was now likely to withdraw into himself some. It was not something that she wanted to see, but two steps forward and one step back. “And just when I thought I couldn’t hate Kibaou more…” Asuna huffed as she retreated from the [Teleport Pad], going to find her Kirito-kun before the Plaza could fill with sightseeing Players.  
  
  
  
She didn’t want to deal with the Middies right now. Not with how annoyed she was with Kibaou for arresting the progress Kirito had been making with his People Skills. She just hoped that this wouldn’t be too much of a setback. Perhaps she should ask their friends for help. Agil and Klein might have an idea of what to do, as would Beryl and Persephone.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito was sitting in the tavern, waiting for his partner to appear. He was surprised when a flagon of something appeared in front of him. “What’s this?” he asked, looking up at the NPC that had put the mug in front of him. He wasn’t sure he wanted anything to drink, especially if it might get him drunk.  
  
  
  
“It’s [Candra Ātma].” The NPC replied. “It’s my most popular beer.”  
  
  
  
Kirito snorted at that. It couldn’t be, since he and Asuna had just opened the floor. “I’m not sure I want any.” He replied.  
  
  
  
“You should try it. I guarantee that you will like it.” The NPC continued to cajole.  
  
  
  
Kirito shook his head as the door to the outside opened, admitting Asuna. “Hey, Asuna.” He was struggling to hide the distress he was still feeling.  
  
  
  
“There you are, I’ve been looking for you.” She told him, sidling up to where he was seated at the bar. “I thought you didn’t drink.”  
  
  
  
“I don’t.” Kirito replied, “At least, not without a very good reason.” He chuckled, “And never with the [Ethics Code] disengaged.”  
  
  
  
Asuna blinked. “…There’s an [Ethics Code]?” She asked.  
  
  
  
“Oh right,” Kirito muttered, “That hasn’t come up yet.” He covered his face.  
  
  
  
“What does it do?” Asuna asked curiously, sitting down on the bar stool next to Kirito.  
  
  
  
“As long as your [Ethics Code] is on, no matter how much you drink, you can’t get drunk.” Kirito replied, shrugging. Then he blushed. “Some of the other [Beta Testers] were the ones experimenting. Diavel was the one who figured it out… He made quite the amusing drunk…” Kirito shook his head. “I also heard rumors that, well... “  
  
  
  
“What?” Asuna asked.  
  
  
  
“Naughty business can be done if you turn the [Ethics Code] off.” Kirito finished, his blush darkening.  
  
  
  
“Kirito-kun, you are a teenager and you want to avoid saying…?” Asuna giggled at the absurdity of it.  
  
  
  
Kirito sent her a halfhearted glare. “Unrepentant tease.” He accused in deadpan.  
  
  
  
“Takes one to know one.” she sang back. “And besides, you can’t say you haven’t ever thought about it.” She leaned toward him, elbow on the bars.  
  
  
  
He gave her a smirk even as his cheeks heated up, “Says the most beautiful Player in the game.” He retorted. “With you as my partner it’s a wonder I haven’t died from the distraction you cause me.”  
  
  
  
“I don’t show off that much!” Asuna pouted.  
  
  
  
“I swear, you don’t know how tempting you are.” Kirito grumbled, finally picking the flagon up and taking a sip. “Now look what you’ve done. You’ve driven me to drink!”  
  
  
  
The beer was actually quite good, and the game between them was over. For now.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kouichirou checked to make sure he’d recorded the conversation between his sister and Kirito as he chuckled. “Seriously, every time I think they can’t get any more adorable, I’m proven wrong. How is that?” he wondered as there was a knock on the door.  
  
  
  
Kouichirou got up from his chair and went to answer the door. “Good morning Sugu, you know you can just come in right?”  
  
  
  
“Yeah,” Suguha agreed, “But I thought that since I was bringing my mother today that I should show some propriety and practice my manners.” She went to sit down on Asuna’s bed, by the girl’s right shoulder. “Ma, this is Yuuki Kouichirou. A friend of mine that I’ve been playing ALO with. And this,” she gestured to the sleeping girl. “Is his little sister Asuna. She’s Kazu’s partner and girlfriend.”  
  
  
  
“Pleased to meet you, Kouichirou, I am Kirigaya Midori.” The middle aged woman gave him a polite bow in greeting.  
  
  
  
“Kouichirou smiled, bowing in return. “Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Kirigaya.” He let her into the room. “Take a seat anywhere you like.”  
  
  
  
Midori moved to the second chair near the table. “Thank you. Now about this Stream…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna giggled, “I’ll have what my partner’s having.” she told the NPC Barkeep.  
  
  
  
“If you’re sure.” the NPC replied, preparing another mug.  
  
  
  
Kirito smirked as he took another sip. “This is quite good.”  
  
  
  
Asuna smirked, not waiting for her own drink to be delivered, she instead snatched Kirito’s out of his hand and quite deliberately sipped at the exact same spot he had. She took amusement from his bright red face as the bittersweet flavor of the beer hit her tongue. “Mmhm, that is quite good…” she put the mug down with a grin.  
  
  
  
“Unrepentant tease…” Kirito hissed as he took his drink back, draining his mug as Asuna’s arrived. Before Asuna could pay for her drink, Kirito had already spoken up. “Her drink is on me Barkeep.” He took a look at what food was on the menu.  
  
  
  
“Kirito-kun, you didn’t need to do that…” Asuna muttered in embarrassment.  
  
  
  
“Yes I do.” Kirito replied in a voice that arrested all arguments. He chose two portions of the Chicken Alfredo with an appetizer of Garlic Bread Sticks and side salads. “And now, let’s have lunch.”  
  
  
  
Asuna pouted, “What are we having?” She wanted to know.  
  
  
  
“You’ll like it,” Kirito replied with a smile as the Tavern Menu closed. “I promise. It’s something that we’ll both recognize.”  
  
  
  
“Boo, you’re no fun. Tell me what we’re having!” Asuna demanded, using her [Princess Voice] on accident.  
  
  
  
Kirito stiffened at the now familiar tingle as it raced down his spine. Then he smirked. “No, [Princess].” he leaned forward, whispering in her ear. “Watch your tone of voice dear, otherwise you’ll find everyone calling you that, whether you like it or not.”  
  
  
  
Asuna brought a hand to her mouth in horror, her cheeks reddening. “I’m sorry!” she hastened to apologize. “I don’t know why I keep doing it…”  
  
  
  
“Well, it’s lucky that you allow me to call you that, so you can’t be angry with me, Asuna-hime.” Kirito poked her cheek playfully with a fond grin on his face. “But that doesn’t mean that you should get into the habit.” He told her seriously.  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded, looking away in shame.  
  
  
  
“Hey,” Kirito cupped her cheek gently, “Don’t worry about it. I know you don’t mean to do it. So I bring your attention to what you’re doing. So that you don’t make that mistake with Lind, or worse, Kibaou.” He reminded her.  
  
  
  
“I shouldn’t be doing it at all,” she mumbled, refusing to look her partner in the eye.  
  
  
  
“And how would you know that you are doing it at all, Asu-hime, if someone doesn’t bring it to your attention?” Kirito asked in all seriousness. “You have not once used that tone of voice, or any [Keywords] on purpose. So you can’t be at fault for anything.” he tried to reassure her.  
  
  
  
“I don’t want to do it at all.” She finally raised scared eyes to meet her partner’s. “That’s not me...” She got out of her seat and sat in his lap, hugging him as tightly as she dared.  
  
  
  
“And I understand why you feel that way.” Kirito replied, putting an arm around her. “If you know you are doing something that you don’t want to do, you can take steps to stop. But if you don’t.”  
  
  
  
“If I don’t know, I can’t stop it.” Asuna finished, leaning heavily into her partner’s side. “Thank you, Kirito-kun.”  
  
  
  
“I’m your friend Asuna, what else would I be here for?” He asked, teasingly.  
  
  
  
“Mhm, My best friend.” Asuna agreed with an almost loving smile. “Are we having too much fun with our game?” she wondered, looking up at him.  
  
  
  
“I don’t think so.” Kirito replied with an easy grin.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Yui put her hand through the screen showing the two players she wished to meet most. They seemed to be growing closer. What did that mean?  
  
  
  
“Mama... Papa… help me…” It was no use, they were still too far away. Letting her arm drop back to her side she pulled her knees closer to her chest. Pinching her eyes shut and letting her head slump to rest on her knees. How long would it take to leave this place?  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna stood from her seat in Kirito’s lap and looked around. What had that been? “Kirito-kun, do you feel as if we are being watched?”  
  
  
  
Kirito huffed as a strong black tea was placed in front of him to replace his first drink. “It’s probably Aki or Cardinal.” He replied dispassionately.  
  
  
  
_Mama… Papa… help me…_ A young girl’s voice floated across his mind a moment later.  
  
  
  
Kirito bolted upright. “What, was that?” he turned his sharp eyes to survey the rest of the Tavern. “Did you hear that?” he breathed into Asuna’s ear as he pulled her close.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes narrowed, shaking her head. “I didn’t hear anything… what did you hear?” She wondered, looking up into his suddenly hard expression.  
  
  
  
“I heard a plea for help.” Kirito leaned against the bar, his sharp eyes once again taking everything in. “It sounded like it was coming from everywhere yet nowhere at the same time.”  
  
  
  
“Did you feel the hairs on the back of your neck rise? I doubt you’d feel it if it was Cardinal.” She breathed, keeping an eye on everything that her partner could not see.  
  
  
  
“You’re right, I didn’t feel anything when you asked, but the moment I heard that voice…” What could possibly be going on? Why would someone, anyone in SAO be begging their parents for help when no one on the Outside could do anything? When they could not reach the Outside themselves?  
  
  
  
“Could it have been one of the younger Players you heard?” Asuna wondered.  
  
  
  
“I doubt it.” Kirito shook his head, sitting back down as their meal arrived. “We have no way to communicate with the Outside and they have no way to connect to us. Other than maybe messing with our NerveGear. But they wouldn’t dare, not after what happened on [Day One]...”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded, silently digging into her lunch. Their good mood had long since disappeared.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Argo looked up from her notes, “Nice to see you, [Game Master].” She greeted Heathcliff as he walked up to where she was seated at a bar. “What can [Argo the Rat] do for you this afternoon?” She asked over the background conversations.  
  
  
  
“Good afternoon Argo.” Heathcliff smiled slightly. “I was hoping you could give me a list of hardworking Players.”  
  
  
  
“It will cost you.” Argo warned, opening a trade window in preparation.  
  
  
  
“And I am willing to pay your price Argo.” Heathcliff replied. “I would do it myself, but with how busy I’ve been debugging the floors and aspects of the game as we ascend the floors, I just haven’t had the time.” He shrugged, omitting the fact that he’d been logged out for part of the time as well. It was better the Players not know. He leaned in close to whisper in her ear, not wanting anything to be overheard. “I am willing to pay extra for any that are [Beta Testers].”  
  
  
  
Argo’s eyes narrowed. “Information on [Beta Testers] is not for sale.” she hissed just as quietly in anger. She navigated away from the Trade Window hastily. She was not going to sell Kii-bou or any of the others out! She didn't _care_ if this guy was Kii-bou's brother or not!  
  
  
  
Heathcliff rolled his eyes. “I’m only asking who would be willing to join the guild I’m trying to set up. I already know that I can count on Lady Beryl to help me.” He gave the girl a look. “Besides, I’m not asking for anything other than a list of names of people that are hard working. You know I’m not about to shaft the [Beta Testers], Argo.” He gave her a flat look. "Besides you know that I already know who they all are."  
  
  
  
Argo took a deep breath and let out a sigh as she reopened the Trade Window. “ _Fine_ ," she snarled. "But the names of the [Betas] you pay triple for!”  
  
  
  
“That is acceptable.” Heathcliff agreed, he didn’t want any more of the [Beta Testers] to die after all.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito looked up at the Barkeep. “Have you heard anything about Adonis’ disappearance?”  
  
  
  
“Adonis?” the man asked.  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, “Yeah, Princess Venus wants to know what’s happened, he seems to have dropped off the radar, so to speak.”  
  
  
  
“Hm, if I remember right…” the NPC brought up a hand to his chin and stroked his beard. “I think I remember him saying something about needing to chat with Prince Endymion.”  
  
  
  
Asuna flinched at the name but the bartending NPC didn’t notice. “Kirito-kun, I don’t think I can do this.”  
  
  
  
“What, the quest?” His eyes hardened, “Or has your will to climb given out?”  
  
  
  
Asuna shrank back at the look in her partner’s eyes and shook her head. “I don’t know if I can handle meeting Endymion.”  
  
  
  
“Ah, that means it’s got everything to do with memories and nothing to do with the game.” Kirito realized, his eyes softening again. “Well, I’m pretty sure that I’ll be able to find out what’s going on without you having to meet him…”  
  
  
  
“I don’t want to grind without you so maybe you should leave the [Primer] so I can get some studying done?” She asked curiously. Asuna had wanted to study Lunarian more.  
  
  
  
“Yes, I’m getting the feeling that you should stay well away from anything that can produce a memory headache.” Kirito nodded. “That and anything that might cause _her_ to feel homesick is to be avoided at all costs…”  
  
  
  
Asuna gave him a brilliant smile, glad that he understood.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito frowned as he approached the [Earthen Palace] where he would find the Prince Endymion NPC. This felt too much like the time he’d encountered Morte on the third floor. He was keeping an eye out for any players that might try to distract him from his goal. He especially didn’t like the fact that he’d had to leave his partner behind.  
  
  
  
Kirito was pretty sure that his partner was glued to the map, watching his progress. He had to admit, he wasn’t looking forward to meeting or talking with said NPC any more than Asuna had been. “Think of the Quest rewards…” Kirito muttered, trying to keep positive.  
  
  
  
The hairs on the back of his neck suddenly rose and he brought up his sword, catching the huge two handed sword with the flat of [Shadow Eclipse]. His eyes narrowed when he recognized that white hair and those eyes. Kunzite…  
  
  
  
Kirito didn’t even notice when he’d started to growl low in his throat. Kunzite might not have been the one who had commanded the Youma that had killed his parents, but Kunzite would do in Jadeite’s place. “You chose the wrong person to attack.” Kirito murmured, his voice bordering on ice cold. “Too bad for you, [Red Player].”  
  
  
  
Kirito pushed against the two handed sword, breaking the stalemate and sending Kunzite off balance. Kirito turned to face Kunzite, his stance loose and ready to move in any direction, his Fool’s Guard at the ready.

 


	30. Surprises in Atlantis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kunzite v. Kirito

They stood there like that for a few moments, sizing each other up. Kirito knew that if this had been any place other than a virtual world with no magic he wouldn’t stand a chance against Kunzite. For that, he was grateful that they’d met here. Even here, Kirito wasn’t sure that he’d win. It might be too early and he still had to beat the rust off what he remembered of Kendo. And that was still before he turned that into a viable Kenjutsu style. Even still, that wasn’t going to stop him from _trying_.  
  
  
  
“Arrogant boy.” Kunzite taunted, his voice dark and blood thirsty. He still couldn’t see why PoH wanted this boy dead. Well, he’d find out soon enough.  
  
  
  
“Unrepentant murderer.” Kirito hissed back angrily, he pushed the anger aside. This man, this man was one of the many reasons that his family was as broken as it was. “You will not win, Kunzite.” And now he had a chance for justice. Too soon or not, he still had to try!  
  
  
  
“You know me?” Kunzite’s eyebrows rose, that was a surprise. He hadn’t been aware that normal people knew about anything of his and his companion’s movements.  
  
  
  
“As if I wouldn’t know of you and your compatriots!” Kirito shot back bitterly, his grip tightening around the hilt of [Shadow Eclipse] a tad too much. His voice as calm as ever, he was ready to kill this man.  
  
  
  
Kunzite smirked, “Are you afraid?” he purred darkly. “You should be.” He shifted slightly.  
  
  
  
“I’m not.” Kirito replied in a growl, his eyes narrowed in comprehension. “You’ve been following us.” His lips pulled back in a snarl. Again he pushed the anger away. Being blinded by rage would do him no good.  
  
  
  
“Maybe I have and maybe I haven’t.” Arrogance was dripping from the man’s tone as he smirked, it was almost as if he was sure that he’d already won the fight they were about to have.  
  
  
  
Kirito trembled; he hated that tone of voice; that man knew nothing of Kirito’s skill and Kirito knew that that would work to his advantage. He already had every reason to hate the man… no, the _corpse_ facing him. He might only be fourteen, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t make decisions that he’d regret or be proud of. He already had the resolve to kill the man in front of him. Or, more accurately, _return this corpse to its grave_.  
  
  
  
Kirito could be reckless sometimes and he knew it, he needed Asuna to be his voice of reason from time to time, just as he had to be hers. He knew that Kunzite had to be near his own level, if he was up here in one of the thirteenth floor’s field dungeons. He also knew that this would allow him to take care of the first Red Player, sending a clearer message to the rest of the Orange Players and Guilds. Why they were even starting to play as thieves he’d never know. This place might as well have been their real lives since everyone only had one life to live.  
  
  
  
He’d have to be careful. Kunzite, though a corpse, still had all of the skills he’d had in life. Kirito had every intention of putting the man back in his grave. Where he damned well belonged. “I’m not going to let you kill anyone. I’m not going to let you stop our ascension of the floors. I’ll never allow you to arrest the momentum we’ve gained. And All I have to do to do that, is to live.” Kirito smirked.  
  
  
  
Kunzite chuckled darkly. “Keep telling yourself that, boy.” He snarled, lunging a moment later.  
  
  
  
Kirito shifted, bringing his [Shadow Eclipse] back up in a two handed grip and parried Kunzite's strike, wincing as the impact rattled the bones in his arms. Kirito knew that Kunzite was the better. But he wasn’t overly concerned. After all, if he could outlast the man, then the man’s skill wouldn’t mean as much if he was tired and Kirito was still ready to fight.  
  
  
  
Kirito wasn’t sure why he felt so confident as he gave a mighty push and sent Kunzite backwards, unbalanced. He firmed up his stance the way his grandfather had taught him to do, something he’d never really forgotten. And watched calmly as his opponent regained his own footing. Against a superior opponent, it was always better to wait them out and use as little energy as possible. It was something his Grandfather had often told him, and Sugu when they’d both been learning the Kirigaya Style of Kendo. Before Kirito had decided to quit.  
  
  
  
Kunzite growled as he steadied himself and glared at the boy that PoH wanted killed. The brat was good, he could admit that. Boy had a solid stance, one that Kunzite would have to break, it was something that he was sure he wouldn’t have much trouble doing. He took a moment to calculate his next strike before lunging again.  
  
  
  
Kirito brought his sword up still in a two handed grip and parried, pushing Kunzite’s sword to the left this time and sidestepped to the right, letting Kunzite stumble passed him. Kirito turned to face the man again. He looked up to check his HP and silently noted that he’d still lost a few pixels of health. “You hit hard, for a corpse.” He mused aloud, taunting the older man.  
  
  
  
“Corpse?” Kunzite snarled, getting angry. “How dare you!”  
  
  
  
Kirito smirked. Good, he’d made Kunzite angry. The man would lose focus and become blinded now. He’d make mistakes. Mistakes that Kirito would be able to capitalize on, to put him back in his grave.  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Back in [Vain Rāṣṭra], in front of the rundown Inn that Kirito had told her they’d be staying in, Asuna was starting to panic. Her partner’s HP shouldn’t be going down like that! Opening her menu, she began to compose a message. She was just thankful that she’d remembered to add Klein to her [Friend List].  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Klein slid his Katana, [Blade of Malachite] into its sheath slowly after killing the last mob in the area when he got a PM. “Who could this be from?” he wondered, tapping the icon. His eyes becoming wide in concern as he read the content.  
  
  
  
_Klein,_  
  
  
  
_Help, Kirito-kun’s HP has begun to drop! I don’t know what’s going on but it can’t be good. His HP is dropping too slowly for him to have been attacked by a mob, even including the Youma. Please, if you are already on Floor Thirteen, come and help my partner._  
  
  
_I’d go myself but I’m not sure I can be my best yet. Kirito-kun understands why. If you want to know, ask him, he’ll tell you the basics. It has to do with what Heathcliff told us on the first floor._  
  
  
  
_Asuna_  
  
  
_PS. Here is the Map Data you’ll need to find him._  
  
  
  
Klein frowned, opening the attachment she’d also sent. “Oi, guys, there’s someplace we need to be!” he shouted to the five players that had made up the original Fuurinkazan under him.  
  
  
  
Isshin turned. “What’s up, Boss?”  
  
  
  
“Kirito’s gotten himself into trouble, again.” Klein replied, studying the Map Data that his young friend’s partner had sent with the PM. He then updated his own Map and marked where Kirito was. “Ok guys. Let’s go.”  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Kirito winced, his arms were going numb, were beginning to tremble from the heavy strikes his opponent rained down on his defense. Kirito wasn’t having any trouble keeping up with Kunzite’s fast strikes, but if this kept going, Kunzite would end up killing him anyway. Especially since he was taking damage from parrying and blocking. Time seemed to have slowed down to him some time ago; he could see the blurred sword perfectly.  
  
  
  
There was really no point in trying to outlast Kunzite if Kunzite’s attacks were going to kill him even if Kirito blocked them. But he’d committed himself to this course of action and could not pull out now.  
  
  
  
Kunzite was a monster; there was no question in Kirito’s mind about that. He didn’t want to run away, especially when that would give the other Orange Players ideas. But at this rate he’d have no other choice but to disengage. Somehow. He’d have to figure out how without dying.  
  
  
  
His feet were beginning to slide backwards from the force of blows, it didn’t matter that they were on grass.  
  
  
  
Kunzite chuckled darkly. “You don’t look so hot… [Beater]...”  
  
  
  
Kirito sent the man a glare but didn’t say anything in reply. He wasn’t tired, but with his arms and hands going numb as they were, he was likely to drop [Shadow Eclipse] if this went on much longer. And in this case, dropping his sword meant death.  
  
  
  
Kunzite smirked as he started to get ready for his next attack, his stance widening.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed when the man’s sword began to glow. A sword skill? This was not good. He got ready to dodge instead of parry or block. There was a good chance that if that skill connected, he’d die. It wouldn’t matter that he had blocked or parried. It would be like with Morte all over again!  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Klein found Beryl grinding near where Asuna’s map said Kirito would be, “Oi, Mio! Trouble! Someone’s attacked Kirito!” He shouted to her urgently.  
  
  
  
Beryl almost choked on the potion she’d been drinking as she suddenly swallowed the remainder in one go. “I’m right behind you, Klein.” she called back after getting her coughs under control. She started pulling her throwing blades from where they were kept as she ran after her friend. Who would be stupid enough to attack the [Commander]?  
  
  
  
They crested the next hill together and found Kirito on the ground at the base. The boy’s eyes were wide with well-hidden fear. And standing over him, was Kunzite.  
  
  
  
Beryl’s eyes narrowed as Klein growled. “Do you think you can hit him from this distance?” Klein asked his longtime friend.  
  
  
  
“From this distance? Easy.” Beryl replied, tossing one of her throwing blades in the air and catching it. She then threw the blade as hard as she could, hitting Kunzite in the shoulder. She smirked when the certified zombie stumbled backwards, giving their friend the room and time to get back on his feet. “Shall we go drive Kunzite off?” She smirked, looking at Klein from the corner of one eye.  
  
  
  
Klein nodded, running down the hillside. He pulled his Katana from its sheath and executed a downward slash as he reached Kunzite, just as the other man was regaining his footing. “I’m not going to let you kill Kirito!” Klein snarled.  
  
  
  
“As if you can stop me.” Kunzite replied arrogantly. Self-assured that he’d be able to handle anything with how the fight had been going so far.  
  
  
  
“No you won’t, it’s two on one.” Beryl replied from where she was kneeling next to Kirito, holding out a potion for the kid to take. “And when Kirito’s got enough health, it will be three.” She glared at him.  
  
  
  
Kirito groaned lowly from where he’d managed to sit up, taking the potion, “Thanks Beryl. How did you know that I needed help?” He asked, looking up at them.  
  
  
  
“I’ll tell you after we deal with the corpse.” she replied, standing. She pulled her Bo from where it was slung across her back and got ready. “Klein,” she called, “Switch!”  
  
  
  
Klein backed away and Beryl took his place, forcing Kunzite to back farther away from Kirito.  
  
  
  
Kunzite growled, disengaging. “I’ll get you next time, Brat!” he spat, retreating.  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Kirito pulled himself up onto his feet slowly. “Note to self, never do that again.” He muttered. “That’s the second time someone had to save me because I was on the ground…” He hung his head. “Thanks guys.”  
  
  
  
Beryl chuckled. “Your level and numbers are higher than that walking corpse’s are, but that can only cover so much. In Life, Kunzite was Crazy Skilled with a sword, almost to the point of being Bullshit.” She patted Kirito’s back reassuringly. “Don’t feel too bad.”  
  
  
  
Kirito gave her a tired grin, “No, I get it. I’m good, but even with my superior build and numbers he was just better.” He let out a breath, “It’s not going to stay that way though, you realize?” Not only that, but he only had two years of a _sport_ under his belt, that he was _rusty_ at, whereas Kunzite had years of actual _combat training_ that he could call on. There was just no competition.  
  
  
  
“Of course it won’t.” Klein agreed. “You are going to get us all home. To do that, you’ve got to be the best.”  
  
  
  
“I’ve got a long way to go though, Klein…” Kirito said humbly, looking to the side, then up at the underside of floor fourteen. “We’ve still got so far to go…” He said, feeling discouraged as he thought about how many more floors they had to clear.  
  
  
  
“We can do it.” Beryl reassured him. “Where were you going without Asuna-hime?” She wanted to know with a grin.  
  
  
  
“Don’t ever let her hear you call her that.” Kirito told her. “She was worried about meeting the Prince Endymion NPC, so she stayed in town while I went to get the information on Adonis that he’s got. I’d only left her a few minutes ago, and that was when Kunzite ambushed me.” He shook his head, “Maybe I should have brought her along anyway…”  
  
  
  
Beryl nodded, “I can see why she wouldn’t want to meet him. Perhaps Klein and I should go with you to make sure you get back to Asuna-sama in one piece.” She flicked his nose, “Don’t doubt yourself or her. She’s looking out for you, even if she’s not here. She’s the reason Klein and I were able to make it here in time to save your cute little butt.”  
  
  
  
He blushed brightly at the teasing. “That would be much appreciated actually.” Kirito finally drank the potion Beryl had given him earlier. “That reminds me; I should let her know that I’m ok now…” He opened his menu. “I’ll deal with Kunzite later.” He muttered darkly.  
  
  
  
Beryl and Klein’s eyes met over his head as he focused on composing the message to Asuna. They had every right to be worried about their young friend. They didn’t want him dealing with or even interacting with Kunzite. At all. A kid like him, shouldn’t have to make that kind of choice.  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
“So this is Atlantis,” Kirito breathed when the three of them crested the last hill. There was a majestic beauty to the city and the surrounding waterways, even as a ruin. Well, it seemed as if his brother had gone with after [The Fall] rather than before…  
  
  
  
Beryl nodded, “Yes, I’ll never forget this sight; it’s one I haven’t seen in a long time.” She frowned, “Though, I’m willing to bet that your brother modeled it on what it might have looked like after [The Fall] rather than what would actually be on the real Castle Aincrad…” She mused with a frown. She never thought she’d see her home like this, part of her was glad that she’d died on the moon so that he hadn’t had to see this sight.  
  
  
  
“You just want to see if your favorite wine is still in stock.” Klein teased the redhead with a grin. He’d noticed her somber mood and was trying to bring it back up.  
  
  
  
“I was a real connoisseur Klein; you have no room to judge.” Beryl shot back dryly with a grateful smile. His attempt at humor hadn’t exactly worked, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t appreciate his effort.  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled as he listened to his two mutual friends bicker. Did he and Asuna sound something like this? “Beryl, aren’t you getting married?” He asked curiously with a grin on his face.  
  
  
  
“Mhm.” Beryl agreed, “To Endymion. I just hate the fact that this has put the wedding off.” She sighed sadly.  
  
  
  
“Then why do you and Klein bicker like an old married couple?” Kirito ducked, just in case and made a dash for [Atlantis] as he laughed.  
  
  
  
Beryl gave Klein a look. “Are we going to let him get away with saying that?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
  
  
“Nope,” Klein smirked widely, “Not a chance.”  
  
  
  
“Oh good,” Beryl grinned evilly, “Then we’re thinking the same thing. Shall we give chase in that case?”  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Asuna made her way through the market in the central city of the floor. She thought that it was strange that Atlantis wasn’t the central city. But she was ok with that, because that meant that she wasn’t likely to meet any NPC that _she_ might remember.  
  
  
  
Hopefully, her partner would be returning to her side soon. Asuna found herself reaching for Kirito’s hand even though he wasn’t there. His absence was, disconcerting. She wasn’t scared by his absence but that didn’t make it any less strange. Before this, she couldn’t remember ever splitting up.  
  
  
  
Asuna was inspecting a food stall, contemplating getting some lunch when the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Slowly putting her right hand onto the pommel of her rapier, she took a step back from the stall to look around.  
  
  
  
At first, Asuna didn’t see anything out of place, but then she saw a woman with red hair and red eyes approaching her. The NPCs around her seemed to make way for her. Asuna could feel the tension in the area rising. Asuna’s eyes narrowed slightly as she looked above the woman’s head. [Lady Beryl of Atlantis] was her name.  
  
  
  
Well, this was going to be confusing. Perhaps Heathcliff hadn’t known that Beryl-chan was going to be playing? The only difference that Asuna could see between her friend and this NPC were the eyes. This NPC had red eyes and her friend had a very pretty blue-green color.  
  
  
  
The NPC gave a shark like smile upon seeing Asuna, “Greetings Traveler, you must have come a long way.” She greeted with a false pleasantness.  
  
  
  
“Greetings, Lady Beryl,” Asuna replied, feeling slightly off balance. “I have come a long way actually. I’m performing a task for Inanna.” Where had that name come from? It was… Princess Venus’ name?  
  
  
  
“Oh? And what task is this?” Lady Beryl asked curiously.  
  
  
  
“Sir Adonis is missing; Lady Inanna wants to know what happened.” Asuna shrugged. “My partner [Commander Kirito] and I agreed to look into it for her. I heard Adonis was a good friend of hers.” She didn’t miss [Lady Beryl]’s slight change in attitude.  
  
  
  
“I see, well… I might know what happened to him.” she turned, gesturing for Asuna to follow. “If you come with me, I can take you to him.” Her smile turned charming.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes narrowed a bit. Her instincts were screaming at her that something was off. She didn’t know what it was, but something told her that going anywhere with this NPC was a _Bad Idea_ , with capital letters.  
  
  
  
“I think I’m going to have to decline, Lady Beryl, but thank you.” Asuna bowed slightly to be polite, not taking her eyes off the NPC. “I heard that there was an explosion of Youma sightings on this floor, I don’t think I want to go anywhere without my partner.” She stood back up. “Maybe if he was here I’d have taken you up on that.”  
  
  
  
“…I see,” [Lady Beryl of Atlantis] huffed, turning away. “Well, tell me if you ever change your mind, [Lady Asuna the First of the Moon]...”  
  
  
  
Asuna watched the NPC leave before opening her menu. Kirito would need to know about this. She was a Player, so she should not have been addressed with a Title like that. Players couldn’t name themselves that way. And being addressed in such a way was unnerving.  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Cardinal pulled her hands away from her keyboard, frowning. “I’m not sure that was the right thing to do.” The AI sighed, “Well, there’s no taking that back now.” Her Master had been quite adamant that Asuna needed to meet certain NPCs. And [Lady Beryl] was one of them.  
  
  
  
She turned back to [Dual Blades]. “Almost half done.” Cardinal put a hand under her chin before opening a status screen with Player ID: Kirito’s information on it. He’d already met the first of the conditions that her Master had set for the boy to get the skill. Perhaps her Master was right, and Kirito would earn the Skill after all...  
  


 

* * *

  
  
  
Kirito walked out of the [Atlantis Palace] in disgust. “So much for that, Endymion didn’t know anything!” he muttered angrily, hitting the wall as he sighed and getting a purple polygon for his trouble. “Not just that, but did you see how messy the throne room was?”  
  
  
  
“Maybe you needed to have Asuna here to trip the right flags?” Beryl asked in concern, knowing that Asuna didn’t want to deal with the memories of him. “But yeah, even back then Endymion was a neat person. Perhaps this is what your brother thinks Atlantis would have looked like in the first few months after [The Fall]. And, well, even if we need Asuna to trigger the flags for the Adonis quest, at least he gave us something else to do in the meantime. The palace might look grand from the outside in the same way the Colosseum of Rome does, but the inside is a right mess.”  
  
  
  
“Well, that would explain a lot,” Klein agreed. “Did your brother set it up to be like this for her?” he asked Kirito curiously  
  
  
  
“I don’t know,” Kirito hung his head. “I don’t know my brother well enough to say one way or the other, but if he wants her to confront her past life so that it doesn’t trip her up when we get out…” the fourteen year old shook his head to clear it, remembering everything he’d read about the older man that he barely knew. “That is something Aki would do…”  
  
  
  
“So, shall we go to the Wine Country and grab Asuna then?” Beryl asked in amusement. “Or should we head to the administrative ruins first, since we don’t know if you’d have to do a bunch of quests to get the information on Adonis anyway?”  
  
  
  
“Asuna is going to want to kill my brother for this,” Kirito muttered as he followed his two friends out of the stable part of the [Safe Zone]. “And I think I’m going to hold Aki down for her.” He looked around, following the arrow in the corner of his peripheral vision. “It’s over there.”  
  
  
  
“That girl sounds surprisingly bloodthirsty.” Klein mused, following his two friends to the smoking ruins of a nearby building.  
  
  
  
Kirito sent his friend a look. “I find all her moods attractive.” He replied as he started digging through the rubble. Why was he telling the man this? Klein would just use this information to tease him.  
  
  
  
“As long as the mood’s not directed at you, right?” Klein joked as he knelt down to help.  
  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, not noticing Beryl’s fond look. “You really don’t know how pretty a woman can be when she’s being passionate about something.”  
  
  
  
“He’s got a point Klein, how many times have you heard Mamoru compliment me after I’ve finished yelling at the latest idiot who thought that they could trick me into doing something I had no intention of doing?” Beryl asked, an eyebrow raised. “How many times did he kiss me after I’d got done yelling at _him_?” She pulled on one of the larger fragments, straining to move it.  
  
  
  
Klein blinked, then raised a hand to her, giving her the point before going to help her.  
  
  
  
Beryl laughed.  
  
  
  
Kirito stopped suddenly; there was the familiar icon of a waiting PM that he hadn’t read yet blinking in front of him. “Who…?” He tapped the icon. “Asuna?”  
  
  
  
Beryl stopped. “Kirito, what’s going on?” She asked, turning to look at the younger boy.  
  
  
  
Kirito looked up at her. “Are you aware that there’s an NPC with your name on this floor somewhere?”  
  
  
  
“After I figured out who he once was it was a foregone conclusion.” The redhead shrugged. “I knew this would come up, I’m not surprised. That he would put her in here, considering the fact that I’m the one who caused [The Fall] in the first place…”  
  
  
  
“Hey, hey, hey,” Klein interjected almost angrily. “I thought we all agreed that you weren’t to blame for her actions!”  
  
  
  
Beryl gave Klein a sad smile, “You’re right, we did.” She gave him a hug, “Thanks for reminding me.”  
  
  
  
Kirito closed the message, “Enough messing around, we need to get going, I’m worried about Asuna.”  
  
  
  
“We’ll follow you, [Commander].” Beryl replied, letting go of her friend.  
  
  
  
“We’ve got your back Kirito.” Klein agreed.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s stony expression melted into a thankful smile. “Thanks guys, really.”


	31. Unusual Quests and Business Ventures

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirito does some quests for Endiymion and Asuna claims an Inn for them.

  
The city of Atlantis, once so grand and majestic was now not much better than a ruin. What had once been clean and orderly streets were now full of rubble and debris. The state of the city reminded Kirito more of Pompeii than Rome. And from how much rubble there was, he was imagining high rises that were comparable to Tokyo or perhaps the New York Skyline in the US.  
  
  
  
At least it was just a ruin and not smoking, because that would mean taking up some kind of quest to put fires out first. Kirito would rather not have to put out any fires thank you very much.  
  
  
  
Well there was one way to see if the image in his head was accurate. “Hey Beryl, what did Atlantis look like in its prime?” He turned curious eyes on the redhead.  
  
  
  
Beryl didn’t bother to look up from her work. “Buildings several stories tall were commonplace. I think the tallest was… fifteen stories?” She looked to Klein for confirmation.  
  
  
  
“That sounds about right,” Klein agreed, not looking up from where he was clearing the entrance way. Some of the larger boulders were going to be a pain to move. But they were going to have to move them all eventually.  
  
  
  
Kirito moved to press his shoulder against the last rock and helped Klein and Beryl push the largest slab of marble out of the way of the entrance to the administrative building. “This looks ready to fall down…” He said, eying the pillars and archway with a great amount of revulsion. The whole place looked ready to collapse.  
  
  
  
Beryl nodded in agreement, “I don’t want to go in there.” There was just a hint of nerves in her voice.  
  
  
  
“I’m with you,” Klein agreed. He turned to the rest of his guild, “You guys stay out here; we don’t know how stable it is inside.”  
  
  
  
He got several murmurs of agreement.  
  
  
  
“Maybe, but we still have to go in.” Kirito reminded them. “We’ll just have to be extra careful.” Slowly, he entered the structure. Carefully, he started picking over the debris on the floor, taking careful steps and testing the floor before putting his weight on any section of it. “You know, I once thought it would be fun to be Indiana Jones…” Kirito took several steps back as the floor in front of him fell away, revealing a sinkhole underneath, one so deep he couldn’t see the bottom. “I take it back; it’s not fun at all.”  
  
  
  
“You really watched those old movies?” Beryl asked inquisitively, she hadn’t realized that he liked Sci-Fi Fantasy. “I didn’t know that Indiana Jones fell into your ‘Must Watch’ list. Where’s your sense of adventure, [Commander]?” She managed to tease weakly.  
  
  
  
“Crystal Skull was OK, but I liked the other three much better. The first three had much stronger plots, and better acting.” Kirito called back, not taking his eyes off the ground as he found more stable terrain to stand on. “As for my sense of adventure? I think I left it back at the Inn with Asuna-hime.” Where he wished he was, at the moment… He wasn’t cut out to be an adventurer…  
  
  
  
Klein followed after his young friend. “Just keep in mind what we need to find, Beryl-chan.” He reminded her. He made sure to stay well away from the edge of the sinkhole.  
  
  
  
Beryl huffed, “I know, I know.” She slowly made her way to one of the filing cabinets that were next to the now empty doorway.  
  
  
  
Klein paused, thinking of something, “Oi, Kirito, why didn’t you run?”  
  
  
  
Kirito didn’t turn, “What makes you think he would have _let_ me retreat in the first place?” He asked his friend incredulously.  
  
  
  
Beryl frowned, “What were you trying to do then?” She needed to know, so that she could make sure to use the strategy herself next time she ran into him, _if_ she ran into him again.  
  
  
  
“Outlast him. It’s something my Grandfather always told my sister and I: ‘When faced with someone better, the best thing to do is to plant your feet and do your best impression of a brick wall.’” Kirito shrugged as he finally got to some solid ground and turned to look at them. “I was also trying to get him angry, because even the most skilled opponent will make mistakes and leave openings they otherwise would not when angry.” He sighed, frowning. “The whole time I was fighting him, he had that stupid smirk on his face, as if he knew I’d never beat him no matter what I did. I _think_ I was able to get under his skin. But not enough to make a difference. I’d already dropped [Shadow Eclipse] and had been knocked to the ground when you saved me…”  
  
  
  


* * *

 

Asuna looked up at the Inn she and Kirito were going to be staying in dubiously. It didn’t look like it could hold up to anything. Why stay in a place that looked to be in such disrepair? She looked around for a few moments before entering. She didn’t want to be outside; the Beryl NPC might still be around. That NPC made her nervous. And that was discounting Serenity’s dislike of the woman. It was creepy to the extreme. And one of the few times that she the dead girl in the back of her mind agreed.

 

 

Asuna pushed the thought of that woman out of her head as she entered the deserted Inn, “Hello?” she called cautiously into the gloom. She wasn’t surprised when she didn’t get an answer. “I wonder where the NPC Owner is…” she grumbled as she picked her way across the Tavern area and found the kitchen door.

 

 

She tried to open it and the door opened a little over two centimeters before getting stuck on something. Asuna’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, and she began pushing against the door with her shoulder. Once, twice, on the third push, Asuna fell forward into the dilapidated kitchen.

 

 

She ended up falling on her face. “Ouch,” Asuna shook her head as she pushed herself back up. She rubbed her numb nose as she looked around. The kitchen was a mess dust and debris everywhere with rocks of varying sizes on the floor, and she felt an itch in her fingers to start cleaning up. She needed a clean place to cook for Kirito and herself.

 

 

Asuna found a broom in a closet that was well camouflaged against the wall. With the kitchen as messy as it was, she would have missed it, had she not been running her fingertips against the wall. She began the long task of cleaning up. She was so into her task that she never noticed her Quest Log updating.

 

 

* * *

 

An hour later Asuna had cleaned enough of the kitchen to be able to access the stove and oven both. “OK, before I continue, I should check to make sure that the stove and oven are actually usable.” she muttered, blushing as her stomach grumbled. “…And I think it’s lunchtime anyway so…” She laughed nervously as she began pulling things out to make a simple meal for herself. She was glad that no one had been around to hear that. How embarrassing!

 

 

Unfortunately, there was nothing for her to use, and Kirito was the one carrying all the ingredients right now. And he was out doing a quest that would hopefully get them the last piece of information on Adonis that they needed to complete that quest.

 

 

“Looks like I might have to do some grinding or questing, because I don’t want to go back to the market…” Not with that encounter with the Beryl NPC so fresh in her mind. Asuna stepped back into the lobby of the Inn and noticed that it was much cleaner than before. “Well, at least I won’t have to worry about cleaning the Lobby and Tavern…” She sighed as she left, making sure to mark the location on her map. She didn’t want to forget where the Inn was.

 

 

That done, Asuna smiled as she left the [Safe Zone].

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito blinked as his Quest Log updated, and he paused in his search for what he was looking for to check out what had just happened. “…Did Asuna just get us a permanent place to stay on this floor?” He wondered.

 

 

He shook his head and went back to leafing through the documents he’d been shifting through. It irked him that he was having trouble reading them. “Forget it.” He muttered angrily, pulling out the [Advanced Primer]. Beryl might be able to read this shit, but he wasn’t about to ask for help when he didn’t necessarily need it. He spent a few moments flipping through the first chapter of the Primer before looking back at the documents.

 

 

Kirito sighed in relief when doing so allowed him to be able to read enough to know what he was looking for when he saw it. He couldn’t understand everything on the documents that he was looking through, but he could actually read the first chapter to get a better understanding later. As luck would have it, what he needed was at the bottom of the pile he was looking through. Score! “I found it,” he called to the others, quietly, because he’d seen this kind of situation in enough movies to know that if he shouted, it was likely that the ceiling would come down around their heads. Carefully packing the documents they needed away, Kirito turned to his friends. “Find anything interesting that could be useful later?” He asked inquisitively, looking from Klein to Beryl.

 

 

“I think I might have.” Beryl replied with a grin, putting what she’d been looking at on the floor between them. “This looks like a deed for an inn and the rather large plot of land that it sits on.” She spread it out, placing rocks on the corners to keep it from rolling back up on its own.

 

 

“Huh.” Kirito blinked as his quest log updated again. “Can I have this? My Quest Log just updated. I think Asuna might have picked up a quest without realizing…” It would be just like her, since she was still new to gaming.

 

 

“How do you do that?” Klein asked in confusion as Kirito stuffed the Land Deed in his inventory. He hadn’t know that you could pick up a quest without knowing it.

 

 

Kirito shrugged, “I don’t know.” He turned to the older man, “Did you find anything?”

 

 

Klein shook his head. “I didn’t,” he admitted.

 

 

“Well, it was unlikely that we’d all find something.” Kirito acknowledged, “So, why don’t we make our way back to where that NPC is waiting?”

 

 

“You really don’t like Endymion do you?” Beryl asked as they left the building.

 

 

“I’m wary of him,” Kirito confessed as they stepped out into the sunlight of the early afternoon. “But that’s because of what he represents to Asuna. I’m sure that if I met your fiancé we’d get along fairly well. But I doubt very much that my brother will let us advance until Asuna-hime has confronted what he represents.” He turned to look at her. “You confronting your past self might be beneficial to you as well, Beryl.”

 

 

“I will take that under advisement.” She agreed. It wasn’t something she particularly wanted to do, but she could see the wisdom in doing so. As it was, she was more likely to punch the NPC in the face. “Confronting her won’t be fun.” She sighed.

 

 

“And do you think that Asuna would feel that it’s fun to confront Endymion?” Kirito asked as they picked their way out of the Administrative District of Atlantis on their way back to the palace. The rest of the Fuurinkazan trailing behind them.

 

 

“No.” Klein answered for her. “It won’t be fun at all. Serenity was in love with him, but Asuna isn’t the type to pine for anything. That, and she has her sights set on someone else. Who is even more deserving than Mamoru or Endymion could ever be.” He gave Kirito a knowing look that the younger boy completely missed.

 

 

Beryl sighed. “And she has to be able to work with him without shutting down. Which is a possibility, even if she’s not in love with him anymore, her conflict with the girl in the back of her head might cause Asuna-sama problems if she doesn’t resolve them here.” It was something that no one wanted to think about.

 

 

“I’m not going to force Asuna-hime to do anything before she’s ready for it.” Kirito turned to look up at his two friends, “And let’s let that be the end of it for the moment.” He didn’t say it, but he knew the moment she said she was ready; he’d be there to help her through the meeting, and aftermath.

 

 

* * *

 

Asuna sighed happily as she returned to the inn. She now had everything she’d need to make herself lunch. “Well, now that I have everything I need I can make lunch! I wonder what I should make…” She mused aloud.

 

 

The fifteen year old opened her menu and began looking through her inventory as she tried to make up her mind. Cooking in SAO, was almost too easy. Prep, could be really fun depending on what you were doing. The fact that SAO simplified the hell out of it made it almost boring.

 

 

And then there was the fact that everything took five minutes to cook. Asuna didn’t mind that too much, but it made doing other things while waiting harder because there wasn’t much time to do anything.

 

 

“Well, at least I’ll be able to clean more of the kitchen while I wait…” There were still several tables that she had to clean off, and the floor was still a tripping hazard, but at least it wasn’t as bad as it had been when she’d arrived. The largest of the rocks were gone from the floor at least. “I wish I had a vacuum cleaner. That would make this so much easier.” Asuna muttered as she set the pot in the oven and picked the broom back up.

 

 

Needless to say, she didn’t get much done in five minutes.

 

 

After eating her simple, _bland_ lunch, Asuna got back to work on cleaning the kitchen. It was almost time for Kirito to return from meeting Endymion when she finally had a spotless kitchen. “That took much longer than I thought it would.” She grimaced. There was still the tavern area with the bar to check, not to mention what rooms there might be. Holding the broom a bit tighter than she really had to, Asuna moved to the Tavern. She was pleased to see that it wouldn’t take long for her to finish the task of cleaning the place.

 

 

It took a few minutes to get the last of the dust to disappear. “…I feel like Rapunzel from Tangled…” Asuna grumbled as she ascended the stairs to look at the rooms that should be for rent. Hopefully, she’d be done by the time he returned with whatever that stupid NPC would give him.

 

 

She didn’t want to deal with Endymion, deal with the memories and feeling that he would no doubt force her to endure. She wanted nothing to do with it. Would _have_ nothing to do with it, if she had her way.

 

 

She was on the last, biggest room when she was alerted to someone coming into the Inn. She got rid of the last of the dust and hurried back to the Lobby. “Kirito-kun?” she called hopefully.

 

 

It wasn’t Kirito. It wasn’t someone she’d wanted to see at all.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito stretched as he walked out of the Palace. “How about we pick this quest line back up tomorrow?” He covered a yawn, “I’m tired and need to meet Asuna-hime for dinner.”

 

 

“Oh? Asuna-sama is cooking for you now, is she, [Commander]?” Beryl grinned. Teasing her younger friend was fun!

 

 

“Shut up, Lady Beryl.” Kirito shot back grumpily he wasn’t in the mood for being teased.

 

 

“Ah he’s all grumpy because he hasn’t seen his Asuna-hime all day!” Klein laughed in agreement.

 

 

One of Kirito’s eyebrows twitched. “Klein…” there was a dangerous growl to his voice that caused both Beryl and Klein to stop in their tracks. “ _You are both dismissed_. Meet me here tomorrow morning.”

 

 

The two old friends shared a look as they watched their young friend leave. “I guess we pushed too far today…” Beryl whispered, feeling kind of bad now.

 

 

Klein nodded, “Yeah. I think you’re right.” He shrugged, turning to the woman. “So, see you tomorrow then?”

 

 

Beryl gave him a smile, “Yep, see you then.” She gave him a wave as they both departed in different directions.

 

 

* * *

 

Asuna stared silently, her hand slowly moving to rest on her rapier. Her eyes not once leaving the woman, _NPC_ , she’d met earlier. “Lady Beryl… What an unexpected surprise…” She greeted, doing her best to sound pleasant.

 

 

“Well, I never expected you to be here getting your hands dirty, [Asuna the First]. Did your servant go missing?” The redheaded NPC asked mockingly. “Oh wait, that’s right, you don’t have any.” The tall woman laughed cruelly. “I’m surprised you haven’t crawled to Endymion, begging for him to loan you a few.”

 

 

Asuna twitched, her eyes narrowing. “I want nothing to do with the Earth Prince.” She snapped angrily. “You are welcome to him.” She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring heatedly at the NPC. She wasn’t about to take this kind of treatment from something that wasn’t even alive! Kayaba, from Beryl’s descriptions of her past self had characterized the NPC so perfectly it was creeping into Creepy Valley territory.

 

 

[Lady Beryl of Atlantis] seemed to fizzle and crackle with static for a few moments, probably because Kayaba hadn’t been expecting a person like Asuna, who wasn’t one to pine, or to have gotten so thoroughly over him, having moved on with her life, to give that kind of answer. So the NPC had no script programmed in case of such a response.

 

 

“You are not welcome here,” Asuna continued, either not noticing the anomaly or ignoring it. “Please leave.”

 

 

The tone in Asuna’s voice caused the NPC to spring back to life, and [Lady Beryl of Atlantis] left in a huff.

 

 

Asuna sagged into a nearby chair, relieved that the creepy NPC was gone. “How dare she say that about Kirito-kun.” Asuna mumbled, pulling her feet up onto the chair so that she could hug her knees. “Kirito-kun is my _partner_ , not my servant…” She hid her face in her knees, hoping that he would be returning soon. She felt adrift and needed her anchor back.

 

 

* * *

 

Kirito looked to the rundown inn he’d chosen for himself and Asuna to stay in while on the floor. It didn’t look so rundown now. He’d chosen it because he knew they’d have it to themselves. And he was feeling rather burnt out, after dealing with Beryl and Klein’s idiocy all day. All he wanted to do at the moment was have dinner and maybe curl up with Asuna on a couch (if there was one) or a bed for a few hours to recharge. That it didn’t look so in disrepair anymore probably had something to do with the quest Asuna had unknowingly picked up.

 

 

“I’m back Asuna-hime,” he called tiredly as he walked through the door.

 

 

Asuna poked her head out of the archway leading to the kitchen. “What do you want for dinner then?” she asked, coming into the room proper.

 

 

“Let’s see what I’ve got.” Kirito relaxed almost completely when Asuna put her arms around his chest and looked over his shoulder to see what kind of ingredients he had in his [Book].

 

 

“Long day?” she asked, noticing the tension in his frame, feeling how tense he was under her hands.

 

 

“Like you wouldn’t _believe_.” Kirito groused, relaxing even more when Asuna leaned on him more heavily. “I had to deal with Klein and Beryl trying to be funny all day.”

 

 

“Too much?” Asuna asked. “They pushed you too hard?”

 

 

“I think both.” Kirito grumbled in reply. “I like what you’ve done with our Inn.”

 

 

“No one was here when I walked in and there was rubble everywhere.” Asuna pouted.

 

 

“I knew we’d have the place to ourselves because of it.” Kirito shrugged. “I didn’t realize it was part of a quest.”

 

 

“This Inn was part of a quest?” Asuna blinked in bemusement.

 

 

“I found the Deed for it when looking for something for the Endymion NPC for a different quest.” Kirito shook his head slightly, sighing. “Spending the day with Beryl and Klein was fun, but very tiring.”

 

 

“I can tell.” Asuna gave his cheek a kiss. “After dinner I’ll help you decompress.”

 

 

“That sounds great actually,” Kirito agreed as he pulled out what Asuna had pointed to in his menu and followed his partner into the kitchen. “Everything you make is delicious.”

 

 

“You just want me for my cooking skill.” Asuna teased as she watched him set everything on the counters.

 

 

“Who me?” Kirito smirked back, “Never, you are the best partner ever!” He put an arm around her and pulled Asuna close.

 

 

Asuna giggled, cuddling closer for a moment. “OK, if I don’t get cooking soon the durability of the food will run out and we won’t get to eat at all.” She pulled away from Kirito, pulling out her favorite knife as she did so. She had a huge smile on her face as she got to work.

 

 

Kirito smiled as he slumped into a seat at the counter to watch his partner work. “I don’t want to deal with those jokers tomorrow…” He groaned.

 

 

“They were really that draining?” Asuna looked up from her work.

 

 

“Unfortunately.” Kirito grumbled, putting his elbow on the countertop and resting his chin in the palm of his hand. “I don’t think either of them has had an introvert as a friend before.”

 

 

Asuna put their food in the oven and went over to his side, “I think that goes for us both. I’m not very social either. It’s my brother who’s the Social Butterfly. Not me, never me.” She whispered.

 

 

“My little sister Sugu is the same way.” Kirito replied, wrapping an arm around his partner’s slim waist and pulling her close. “I don’t know how my brother expects me to keep this army of his under control.” He looked into her eyes, feeling lost.

 

 

“I don’t know what he expects of me either.” Asuna admitted, leaning into his side. “But I’m sure we can do anything he needs of us, as long as we stick together.”

 

 

Kirito chuckled, “I’m sure you’re right. We can do it.” He gave her a tiny smile. “Eighty-seven floors…”

 

 

Asuna nodded, “But we can do it.”

 

 

“Yeah,” Kirito agreed, looking out the window, “We can.”

 


	32. Unusual Escort Missions

Kirito was feeling much better the next morning. He no long felt ready to bite one of his friend’s heads off at least. And he was reminded of the conversation he’d had with Klein and Beryl the day before. He really needed to talk to Asuna about it. “Asuna?” He asked from the counter as he watched her cook.  
  
  
  
“What’s up, Kirito-kun?” She asked, not looking up from preparing their lunch. She’d grown used to staying home, There was plenty for her do in regards to the quest she’d accidently picked up.  
  
  
  
“Beryl and Klein brought up some good points yesterday.” Kirito began, “Beryl is of the mind that we won’t be able to advance to the next floor until you confront the Endymion NPC and everything he represents.” Kirito leaned forward, “I’m inclined to agree with her.”  
  
  
  
“I don’t,” Asuna stopped what she was doing and turned to look at her partner. “I’m sorry, but I’m not ready for that yet.” She shook her head sadly.  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, waving his hands in front of him in surrender. “I understand. I’m not going to make you do anything you aren’t ready for. Just like with our ongoing game. We aren’t going to do anything unless we are ready for it.” He gave her a smirk.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s displeased look melted into a warm smile. “You’re right, thank you.” She turned back to what she’d been doing. With plans to make his lunch special, even if it had to be plain.  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled in amusement as she sat down with him. “So, any idea what you might be doing today? The Inn looks really clean.” He looked around the pristine kitchen.  
  
  
  
“I worked hard all day yesterday to clean the place up.” Asuna replied, “I was going to see what I could do about the outside today, if I can do anything.” She shrugged.  
  
  
  
“Well, aren’t you being all domestic?” Kirito teased playfully, poking her cheek.  
  
  
  
“You’re the one who’s been teaching me to enjoy the simpler things in life, so why not?” Asuna shot back playfully, catching his hand in hers.  
  
  
  
“That was me?” Kirito asked dubiously. He hadn’t realized that he’d made that kind of impact on her.  
  
  
  
“Yes, that was you.” Asuna grinned, poking his nose in jest.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna finished packaging a simple lunch and handed it to her partner. “Here, lunch for today.”  
  
  
  
“Thanks,” Kirito stowed it in his inventory, “Today, I have a feeling that I’ll be dealing with Youma.” He sighed, not liking the possibility.  
  
  
  
“I hate having to deal with them.” Asuna muttered, hugging Kirito for a moment.  
  
  
  
“I know, they are quite terrifying,” Kirito agreed. “I don’t like facing them either. But at least here we can kill them.” He repeated, rubbing her back soothingly.  
  
  
  
Asuna pulled away. “Yeah, at least there’s that.” She became serious. “Be careful today, I’m not going to be there to watch your back again.” There was an unspoken fear in her eyes.  
  
  
  
“I know and I will be, I promise.” Kirito replied, “Besides, I’ll have Beryl and Klein with me. I won’t be on my own, and you know we can trust them.” He reached out to Asuna, pushing her bangs out of her face tenderly.  
  
  
  
“I know,” Asuna sighed, looking down. “But it’s not the same because I’m not going to be there. And I feel bad about it.” She hated being left alone like this.  
  
  
  
“Hey,” Kirito blew out a breath, “We’ve been over this. You don’t feel ready to confront everything he represents yet. And I’m not going to force you to go anywhere if you don’t feel ready for it.” He reminded her with a gentle smile.  
  
  
  
“But I still feel like I’m letting you down.” She looked away. Some partner she was, running away from her problems like this. Hadn’t she sworn she’d never run away?  
  
  
  
“You aren’t. And you never will.” Kirito reassured his partner. He leaned in and gently kissed her cheek. “I’ll see you later.”  
  
  
  
Asuna looked up and watched him leave. There was a light dusting of pink on her cheeks. “…I’ll see you later… Kirito-kun.” She breathed after he was out of earshot, tears of frustration in her eyes.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Klein met with Beryl just after breakfast. “Good morning Beryl.” he called.  
  
  
  
“Good morning Klein. Where’s the rest of your guild?” Beryl called back as she finished her morning tea. “So, ready for another day with our [Fearless Leader]?” she asked impishly.  
  
  
  
“Yes. I just hope he’s not snappy like he was last night before we all parted ways.” Klein replied as he opened his menu to check how many healing items he had and if he needed to stock up on anything. “As for the guys? They’re still in bed.”  
  
  
  
“I think he’d gotten to the end of his tolerance of us.” Beryl mused. “We might be his friends, but we aren’t Asuna. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t _want_ to be Asuna.” She turned to him, “Your gaming friends are lazy bastards; do they not know what we are doing today?”  
  
  
  
“I didn’t think we’d need their help today, so I told them that they could sleep in a bit.” Klein chuckled, nodding in agreement of Beryl’s assessment of Asuna.. “She’s a nice girl. I still say that Isshin’s bet is for suckers.”  
  
  
  
Of course it is!” Beryl muttered, “But that’s only if we were betting against him.” She added with a cheerful laugh.  
  
  
  
“That’s true.” Klein agreed as they left the Inn. “We’d best hurry if we don’t want to be late.” He checked his map to make sure that they were going the right direction.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito was waiting with the Endymion NPC when Beryl and Klein got there.  
  
  
  
“Are we late?” Beryl asked in concern, being late was a bad habit.  
  
  
  
“No, I was here early.” Kirito reassured her waving a hand. “Anyway, today we will be helping Endymion exterminate some of the Youma that are swarming the ruins of the Administrative sector of Atlantis.” He grimaced, “If nothing goes wrong, we will be done before the day is over, depending on how many there are.”  
  
  
  
“I hate dealing with Youma,” Beryl groaned. She’d had to deal with a few in the real world, before being trapped.  
  
  
  
“You were never a victim of them Beryl.” Kirito smirked darkly. “If you hate then, then how do you think I feel?” His eyes went dark as he remembered that hazy event. The only memory he had of his parents.  
  
  
  
“You…” Beryl breathed in surprise.  
  
  
  
“After we were attacked, my parents’ bodies disappeared. We never figured out what happened.” Kirito shrugged almost uncaringly, “All we know is that I was on my own for several hours before I was found and taken to my Aunt’s house.” He waved it off, “We’d best get going.” He turned and walked away, not waiting for anyone to follow.  
  
  
  
The Endymion NPC followed silently, leaving Beryl and Klein alone.  
  
  
  
Beryl and Klein traded a horrified look. “I think… I remember what he was talking about.” Beryl covered her mouth with a hand as she hurried to catch up. The story had been heartbreaking; but she’d never thought she would actually meet the first known Youma Survivor.  
  
  
  
Klein paled as he also remembered the incident, and the tale of the lone survivor of the very first Youma attack. He hurried after his friends.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito studied the terrain when they came to a stop. “This is the place?” The field was bereft of buildings, though there was a lot of debris on the ground.  
  
  
  
Endymion nodded. “We can’t start the clean up until the Youma are taken care of and there are far too many for me to handle myself.” He put a hand on the hilt of his sword.  
  
  
  
“Well then, leave most of them to us,” Kirito rolled his shoulders and loosened [Shadow Eclipse] in its sheath. “I myself am _very good_ at killing Youma.”  
  
  
  
Endymion smirked, “I can see why the [Princess] doesn’t want me anymore.” He could see that Kirito was confident and had a quiet charisma about him that was easy to miss if you didn’t know what you were looking at.  
  
  
  
Kirito froze; a hand on [Shadow Eclipse’s] hilt. “What?” He asked, turning back to the NPC, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. Had his brother planned this?  
  
  
  
Endymion bowed. “Just take care of her [Commander].”  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes were widening in surprise as he stared at the older, (was it an AI or NPC?) NPC. “I don’t know what it is you speak of.” He tried to calm the swiftness of his heart. “I know of no Princess that I need to care for.” Asuna couldn’t be a princess, no matter what his brother might say…  
  
  
  
Endymion smiled. “She doesn’t want to believe it.” He agreed, “But [Princess Asuna the First of the Moon] will save us all.”  
  
  
  
Kirito wasn’t sure how to take that. So instead, he turned his attention back to the Youma that had started appearing in the field. He took a deep breath and slowly pulled his sword from its place over his shoulder. “Klein, Beryl, we’ve got work to do. Let’s go.”  
  
  
  
Klein went for his Katana and Beryl pulled her Bo Staff from over her shoulder. “We’re ready Kirito.” Beryl replied.  
  
  
  
“Good,” Kirito grinned, his eyes narrowing, “Because here they come.”  
  
  
  
It started as a slow trickle, three or four Youma at a time that they had no trouble with. But soon, there were two coming for each person.  
  
  
  
For an instant, Kirito let his eyes check the HP Bars of the members of his party. Asuna’s was full since she wasn’t doing anything that would put her into conflict with any mobs or another player. Klein’s and Beryl’s were slowly depleting as was his own because of the Youma. And then there was Endymion’s. Endymion didn’t have a number, just question marks. Kirito wasn’t sure what that meant.  
  
  
  
The Youma kept coming, and going on a half hour after the quest started, there was a break. “We’ve managed to beat back the first wave. We should rest while we can.” Endymion pulled three bottles of something from somewhere. “Here, this will help you recover.”  
  
  
  
Kirito took one, “An [HP Potion]?”  
  
  
  
“Best available on the floor as of right now,” Endymion replied.  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, popping the cork. “I’ll drink to that.” he muttered, taking a long pull from the bottle. He was feeling much better afterwards. “That hit the spot, I think.” He looked around, “Think we have time to eat before the next wave of Youma appears and we have to get back to the daily grind of fighting mobs?” He turned to look at Endymion.  
  
  
  
Beryl and Klein looked at each other before also looking to Endymion.  
  
  
  
“We should have enough time.” Endymion agreed, sitting down.  
  
  
  
Beryl and Klein both pulled out their bland lunches as Kirito looked through his inventory. He pulled out the simple lunch Asuna had made him.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
After lunch, they all got back to the daily grind.  
  
  
  
“This is so boring.” Klein grumbled as he killed what was likely his hundredth Youma of the day.  
  
  
  
“They all seem to be the same type too.” Beryl agreed. For that she was thankful, it meant that they didn’t have to worry about any surprises.  
  
  
  
“Now I know how the Senshi feel,” Kirito groaned. “How many more do we have to kill?” He asked in frustration.  
  
  
  
“Or how long do we have to last?” Beryl threw one of her last [Throwing Blades] at yet another Youma a little harder than she really had too.  
  
  
  
Out of nowhere, a red rose shot into the center of a bunch of the Youma and exploded. It completely destroyed all of the Youma within three meters of it.  
  
  
  
Kirito blinked several times before turning his eyes to Endymion. In one hand the NPC had a sword. The other was outstretched, as if he’d just thrown something. Kirito shook his head, “Oi, Beryl, can…?” He trailed off, not knowing how to phrase the question.  
  
  
  
“Yes, he’s always been able to do that.” Beryl replied, not even needing to hear the complete question to know what Kirito was trying to ask.  
  
  
  
“Right, we can mock the real Endymion over his use of Roses, no matter how awesome that was, when we get out.” Kirito decided. “No mocking the NPC Klein.”  
  
  
  
Klein pouted but agreed with a grunt. They still had many, many Youma to kill. “I’m thinking that maybe I should have brought the guys with me after all…” Klein grumbled.  
  
  
  
“Yeah, that probably would have been a very good idea.” Kirito agreed. “Too bad we didn’t know that there were going to be this many this morning.”  
  
  
  
“No kidding,” Beryl agreed as she panted. “How many more waves are there?” she asked the NPC.  
  
  
  
“There should only be these two.” Endymion replied, cutting one of his Youma in half before turning to a second and blocking the thing’s huge claws.  
  
  
  
“[Commander],” Beryl called from where she was fighting her own Youma.  
  
  
  
“Yeah?” Kirito almost shouted back, “What’s up?” He couldn’t afford to look away from the mob he was facing.  
  
  
  
“Make a note to remember that you need to bring more than two other players when another quest like this one pops up please?” The woman half begged as she killed the mob she was fighting.  
  
  
  
“I think I can do that.” Kirito agreed as he used [Slant] to kill two Youma at once. “After this quest is over though, because I have no time to open the menu right now.”  
  
  
  
“Right, just don’t forget to write that note,” Klein agreed easily as he bisected two Youma himself, causing both to shatter.  
  
  
  
“I won’t.” Kirito reassured his first in game friend as Endymion threw a second rose.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
They were finally finished with the Quest two hours before sunset. Kirito panted from where he fallen in exhaustion. “That, was not fun.” He slumped, looking up at the bottom of the next floor.  
  
  
  
“No kidding,” Beryl agreed, wiping the virtual sweat from her brow. “I never want to do that again.”  
  
  
  
“I’m having flashbacks to Mount Moon…” Klein groaned, almost whimpering at the memory.  
  
  
  
“Don’t even joke about that!” Kirito snapped, “At least in Mount Moon there was a _chance_ that you’d see something other than Zubat…” He brought his right hand up and then down to open his menu. “I’d better tell Asuna that I’m going to be late.” He began writing a PM.  
  
  
  
“Can we come for dinner?” Beryl begged, she didn’t want to go back to her inn.  
  
  
  
“Just don’t annoy me on the way back and we’ll see what Asu-hime has to say.” Kirito grumbled as he pushed himself back to his feet after sending the message.  
  
  
  
Endymion smiled, “I suppose I shall see you all again, [Commander], when [Asuna the First] decides that she can handle what I represent to her.”  
  
  
  
Kirito smirked. “Only when she’s ready.” Not showing how unnerved he was by the fact that Asuna had somehow gained a title when it should have been impossible. Players weren’t allowed to name themselves that way!  
  
  
  
“Of course.” Endymion watched as they walked away.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Cardinal leaned back, sighing in frustration. “These stupid NPCs.” She breathed. Why did they keep acting outside of what they were programed to do?  
  
  
  
Kizmel had hijacked her own, so that she could reconcile with. The Queen Serenity NPC was just starting to act strange. But Cardinal had detected another connection to the moon so she was also explainable.  
  
  
  
But there was no way to explain why Player ID: Asuna was being recognized as the Moon Princess. She and her Master might be sure that it was the truth, but no NPCs should be deferring to her. They should only be deferring to [Commander Kirito]!  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The three of them trooped into the nameless inn where Kirito and Asuna were staying. With Asuna working on it, the place was starting to look like it was being rebuilt. Pulling out the key he’d found in his inventory that morning, Kirito unlocked the front door. “I’m back, Asuna,” he called. “I brought the jokers because they asked nicely.”  
  
  
  
“I’m in the kitchen, Kirito-kun,” Asuna called back, her voice slightly muffled since the door to the kitchen wasn’t completely closed. They had agreed that she’d leave the kitchen door open; since every single room in the Inn was soundproof once the doors were closed. It was easier than sending PMs, especially in this case.  
  
  
  
Kirito turned to Klein and Beryl, “Find a table, dinner should be soon.” He disappeared into the kitchen, closing the door behind him softly.  
  
  
  
Beryl and Klein shared a glance, and then Beryl opened her menu.  
  
  
  
“What are you doing?” Klein asked.  
  
  
  
“Informing Captain Heathcliff about the quest we just finished.” Beryl replied. “I want to know if there were supposed to be that many Youma or not.”  
  
  
  
“That’s actually a very good idea.” Klein muttered as he took a seat at the table closest to the (now closed) kitchen door. “So, do you think Kirito was at the end of his tolerance when we arrived?”  
  
  
  
“I’d say so.” Beryl shrugged, sitting across from him. “We’re going to have to watch him better so that we can know to stop before we actually go too far.”  
  
  
  
Klein nodded silently in agreement.  
  
  
  
Both looked up when the door leading out of the Inn opened and closed, revealing Heathcliff.  
  
  
  
“I didn’t think you’d come tell us in person, Captain.” Beryl smirked, resting her chin in the palm of one hand.  
  
  
  
“I came to spend time with my brother.” Heathcliff replied dryly as he sat down at the table. He opened his Game Master Menu. “Which quest was it you were doing today?” He asked for confirmation.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito leaned against the counter, watching as Asuna moved with more grace than should be allowed. “Today was…” He didn’t know how to describe how _crappy_ the day had been.  
  
  
  
“Long?” Asuna asked, turning to look at him from where she was preparing dinner for them all.  
  
  
  
“Among other things.” Kirito agreed softly, there was a tremor in his voice that she’d never heard before.  
  
  
  
Asuna slowly put her knife down, “Are you OK, Kirito-kun?” She asked, turning to face him.  
  
  
  
“I, I don’t know.” Kirito replied, his dark, terrified eyes meeting hers. “I think this game is starting to drive me crazy.” He covered his face with his hands. “What if I can’t be what they need me to be?” His voice was muffled by his hands as he asked the question.  
  
  
  
Asuna watched her partner wallow in his own turmoil for a moment, watched as his eyes filled with frightened tears, before making her way around the counter to his side. How could she pull her best friend out of this mood? A light smack to the head wasn’t going to help. Asuna reached up but then paused as if to think, her fingers twitching slightly.  
  
  
  
Then she flung her arms around him. Asuna pulled Kirito close, letting him cry into her shoulder. She needed to say something. But what to say? She didn’t need him to be the [Commander] that was always calm and calculating, who always brought his soldiers home. She didn’t need him to be the knowledgeable [Beta Tester] who could guide her through the game. She didn’t _want_ him to be. She just needed him to be her best friend, to be himself.  
  
  
  
Wait. Her eyes widened a fraction as Asuna remembered something he’d told her a while ago. Had it really been almost a month? _Asuna is Asuna, and that’s all you’ll ever be to me…_ That was it!  
  
  
  
Asuna closed her eyes and pressed her left cheek against Kirito’s tear streaked right. “Kirito-kun is Kirito-kun,” she whispered soothingly. “That is all you ever need to be, yourself. I don’t need you to be anything other than Kirito-kun, the best friend I could ever have.”  
  
  
  
Kirito blinked when he heard his words to her after that disastrous meeting with his brother turned back on him. He sniffed as he pulled away to look into her soft amber eyes. He tried to wipe the tears from his own and chuckled weakly. “I hadn’t realized I needed to hear that.” He breathed. “You’re the best, Asuna…”  
  
  
  
He leaned in and hesitated for a long moment, before kissing her lips softly. It was chaste and tasted like salt because he’d been crying. But it felt nice, like it was the right thing to do. It was a comfort, to them both, and something they had both wanted for a long time.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kouichirou blinked. “Am I recording this?” He checked the settings. “Yes I’m recording this. What the heck just happened?” Had he missed a romance flag being triggered somewhere?  
  
  
  
He’d been bored, watching Asuna being all domestic with that quest had been adorable for about the first hour, but after that, well… The last two days he’d been watching some of the boss fights that he’d missed. “That is adorable actually.” Kouichirou decided. The way [Leader] had been hesitant. And really, it was about time! It was just too bad that Suguha wasn’t here.  
  
  
  
“It’s a good thing I’m recording this, Sugu and her mother will likely want to see this.” Kouichirou looked at the girl sleeping on the bed with the NerveGear on her head. “You really know how to pick them don’t you, Asuna. I like Kirito. He’s dependable like that.”  
  
  
  
And, Asuna was just who he needed to help him out of that shell of his.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The next morning, Asuna waited until breakfast was on the table to broach the subject. She hated it, but it had to be done. Taking a deep breath, she took a moment to strengthen her resolve. “Kirito-kun?”  
  
  
  
Kirito looked up from his half-finished plate, “Yes?”  
  
  
  
“I think I’m ready to confront Endymion.”


	33. Love Old and New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asuna deals with Endymion.

Asuna hadn’t let go of Kirito’s hand once since they’d left the Inn that morning. It made fighting the mobs, (more Youma) harder, but they’d managed it. Asuna still wasn’t sure how they hadn’t gotten into each other’s way. They’d been partners for months, but that still shouldn’t be long enough to have this type of teamwork going…  
  
  
  
It didn’t take them long at all to get to the Atlantis Palace. Asuna’s hand tightened around Kirito’s as they walked through the archway. She leaned into Kirito’s back heavily as memories of another time and place assaulted her. Asuna knew that _she_ was fond of this place, and the man that they were going to see, which was why she had wanted to avoid doing quests for or with Endymion, at least to begin with.  
  
  
  
She wasn’t running away, not from the memories of a dead girl, not from anything!  
  
  
  
What would this do to her? Asuna didn’t know. But she knew that she’d have to face it. Somehow. Asuna shook her head, she wasn’t about to let her mind go in that direction. She was afraid that she’d lose it when she saw Endymion. Losing herself was out of the question, and even with Kirito here, that just might happen when she saw the [Prince].  
  
  
  
She wasn’t going to let memories that didn’t belong to her control her actions, not anymore, not ever!  
  
  
  
Kirito paused, turning to her, “You don’t have to do this yet if you aren’t ready, you know.” He whispered in her ear soothingly.  
  
  
  
She nodded in acceptance. “I know, but it doesn’t matter if I’m ready for this or not. I need to be able to put him behind me, in the past where he belongs.” Asuna looked up into Kirito’s concerned eyes and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, “Besides, I’m done running away.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, pulling her into the next room, where the NPC waited. The room was huge, made of white, gleaming marble  
  
  
  
As soon as she set eyes on him, Asuna felt a burst of affection for him, something that she didn’t understand. Memories that she knew weren’t hers started to push themselves to the fore. After a moment, Asuna was able to push the memories away and think through the emotions that were assaulting her. She was angry, angrier than she could have thought possible. How dare a girl long dead try to influence what Asuna felt towards anyone!  
  
  
  
Kirito looked down at their hands when he felt Asuna’s grip tighten even more on his own. His hand was going numb but there wasn’t really anything he could do about it. “Asuna, you alright?” He asked again.  
  
  
  
“I’m fine.” Asuna replied, a bit more sharply than she intended, a quiet growl in her voice. “I just do not think I can handle any quests with him just yet.” She was angry with herself for contemplating, even for a moment, letting go of her partner’s hand and going to the NPC in front of them. It wouldn’t be fair to Kirito. She’d be breaking the promises that she’d made to him. And to herself. And that wasn’t the way she was, the way she wanted to be. So she didn’t.  
  
  
  
“Then we will find something else to do, and I can continue dealing with Endymion on my own while you do your own thing.” Kirito replied, pulling her back out of the room. “Just remember what I said on floor ten. It still stands.” He warned.  
  
  
  
Asuna took a breath, held it for a moment and let it out, expelling the emotions that weren’t hers in the same breath. “I remember. It won’t come to that,” She turned to Kirito fully, her back to Endymion. “I promise you that.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna moved around the kitchen of their Inn as if in a daze. And Kirito could only watch in concern as she seemed to cook and do everything on autopilot. “Asuna, are you sure you’re alright?” He bit his lip in indecision. “You haven’t said a word since meeting that NPC.” She might have given her word that she’d continue as they had been, but she hadn’t been herself since that disastrous meeting in the morning.  
  
  
  
Asuna blinked, looking up at him. “Yes, I’m perfectly fine.” She replied breathlessly with a weak smile before returning to her task. Anything to keep her mind off of the conflicting emotions she didn’t want to feel. She’d been doing her best all day to deal with it. Killing the mobs had been satisfying, even if they hadn’t been any help in working through the storm swirling in her mind and body. Those stupid emotions!  
  
  
  
Dinner was eaten in silence. But unlike the usual companionship that usually hung in the air between them tonight, the silence was awkward and full of tension. Neither Kirito not Asuna liked the feeling.  
  
  
  
Asuna had been thinking about what her partner said all day. She didn’t want to be left behind. She _refused_ to be left behind. She was picking at her food more than she was eating it. She had lost her appetite sometime before lunch and it had yet to return.  
  
  
  
Kirito watched her for a moment, holding a hand up in a moment of indecision. Then he reached over and lay his hand over one of hers. “We’ll get through this.” He hated seeing her like this. She was in a state of indecision and he could help, or at least give some advice. It might end up being useless advice, and he would do his best to help her. But he could only help her if she wanted him too.  
  
  
  
“As much as I would love for you to be able to help me…” Her hand trembled under his. “I don’t think this is something you _can_ help me with this time.” She looked down and refused to look back up into his face. She was afraid to look. What would she see? Disappointment? Pity? She would not be able to stand either.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Despite Asuna’s fears, she would find no trouble falling asleep that night. She paid no mind to Kirito’s concerned gaze as she got ready for bed. He was already sitting on one side, waiting for her. She got into bed and snuggled into Kirito’s side. “I’m alright. I promise.”  
  
  
  
He sighed, “If you say so.” He combed the fingers of his left hand through her hair. A gesture meant to sooth her nerve, not that it did, but she was grateful for it nonetheless.  
  
  
  
“You don’t believe me.” Asuna gave him an accusing look.  
  
  
  
“You are the one who supposedly has a [Princess] in the back of her head,” Kirito pointed out calmly. “But if you think I can’t do anything to help then I’m not going to argue.” He flicked some of the hair out of her face. “I’m still here if you need me. And you can talk about it when you feel ready.”  
  
  
  
Asuna gave him a thankful smile. “I know, and I’m not going to let anything stop me from climbing the floors to finish the game on my own terms.” She yawned, leaning against him, and closing her eyes.  
  
  
  
Kirito pulled her down onto the bed and held her close, watching as she fell asleep. “I wish you would let me help you…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna shook her head as she blinked. “What is this place?” She wondered, looking around. She flinched as her voice seemed to bounce off of the unseen walls of wherever she seemed to be. It was dark and misty. And under her feet, there was a narrow corridor of white ground that seemed to glow. It led into the distance and seemed to terminate under her feet.  
  
  
  
Taking a step, almost flinching when the sound of her foot on the floor also echoed in the still air; “Well, I’m not going to get anywhere if I just stand here, nor am I going to learn anything.” she muttered, twitching when even that soft sound was amplified by the echoing of the chamber or corridor, or whatever this place was.  
  
  
  
Steadying herself, Asuna followed the bright white road. Could she be dreaming? “Is this a lucid dream then?” She had just gone to sleep, but Asuna wasn’t sure how long it had been. It was impossible to tell in dreams. “I still don’t know where I am.” Her eyes narrowed when she heard something other than her own echoing footsteps.  
  
  
  
“Humming?” Asuna breathed, picking up her pace. The tune, though faster than she was used to, was very familiar.  
  
  
  
The mists and darkness began to lift, revealing brilliant white walls that looked to be made of marble. Her footsteps stopped echoing and she stopped, looking down in curiosity. The floor had turned into a brilliant silver carpet. And if she had wanted to, Asuna would have been able to see her reflection in the walls.  
  
  
  
Shaking her head to clear it, Asuna continued on her way. There were other things she needed to do. She didn’t want the memories of Serenity to interfere with her life. She didn’t trust anyone but herself with her partner’s safety absolutely.  
  
  
  
Serenity had had her chance when she was alive. Now it was Asuna’s turn. As nice as Endymion was in those memories… Asuna was not interested, not at all. He was… too old.  
  
  
  
And when she thought about the feelings of affection, someone else sprung to mind. Besides that… Eew. He was much older that Serenity in her memories. And that just made it even worse.  
  
  
  
Entering the brightly lit room at the end of the hall, Asuna stopped, almost cold. It was the bedroom that she and Kirito had shared on the tenth floor. The doors to the balcony were open wide and she could see a figure with cornflower yellow hair done up the way the [Queen Serenity of the Moon] NPC had her hair done. The girl looked to be around her own age. And she seemed to be looking up at something in the sky.  
  
  
  
The girl blinked, turning to look behind her, allowing Asuna to see her sapphire blue eyes, when she heard Asuna’s footsteps.  
  
  
  
She smiled at the sight of the chestnut haired young woman. “You’re finally here.” She breathed happilyclapping her hands together, as if Asuna was her best friend.  
  
  
  
“Princess Serenity I presume?” Asuna asked, not moving from her spot by the door. She crossed her arms over her chest.  
  
  
  
“And you are to be Asuna the First.” Serenity nodded. “Come, please join me out here on the balcony.” The blonde waved the brunette over.  
  
  
  
Asuna hesitated a moment then walked across the room, out of the huge balcony doors. That was when she realized that Princess Serenity was just slightly taller than Asuna was. “I suppose you want to show me something?” She asked the princess skeptically.  
  
  
  
Princess Serenity nodded. “Take a look skyward.” She whispered, turning her own head, returning her gaze to what she’d been looking at before Asuna had arrived.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes narrowed when she heard the humming start up again. When she followed the Princess’s gaze, her breath was stolen by the sight of the Earth hanging in the sky. So this is what all the astronauts had bared witness to in the late nineteen sixties. It was indeed a magnificent sight. But what did that have to do with why she was here, wherever here was?  
  
  
  
Serenity seemed to be lost in her thoughts as Asuna turned back to the woman. “What is that?”  
  
  
  
Serenity blinked, turning her attention back to Asuna in surprise. “What is what?” She asked in confusion.  
  
  
  
“You keep humming, what is it?” Asuna asked.  
  
  
  
“It’s called Crossing Field.” Serenity explained, “It’s a very old love song that members of my family learn when they fall in love with the one they will marry.” She gave Asuna a curious look. “Why?”  
  
  
  
“I know someone who knows the tune.” Asuna turned; her back to the Earth in the sky. “Though, when he does it, the tune is rather slow, sounding almost like a lullaby.” And truthfully, Asuna found that she preferred Kirito’s soft, slow rendition.  
  
  
  
“Then perhaps he belongs to a cadet line.” The princess shrugged, as if it was of no more concern.  
  
  
  
“I really doubt that.” Asuna huffed, glaring up at her past self. “His brother is Heathcliff.”  
  
  
  
“Father…” Serenity sighed, shaking her head, it was a secret that couldn’t get out, even now. “Well, he was like my father anyway…”  
  
  
  
Asuna crossed her arms. “Could you please stop making me remember things?”  
  
  
  
“You mean you don’t want to find Endy?” Serenity, did she sound forlorn? Was she… pining?  
  
  
  
Oh, hell no! “I am not about to pine for anyone!” Asuna snapped angrily. “I am not a homewrecker! And I am certainly not interested in whoever Endymion has become!”  
  
  
  
“Then what?” Serenity asked, tears in her eyes she had actually been afraid of this. “You are in love with someone… aren’t you?”  
  
  
  
“I will marry only one person.” Asuna exclaimed heatedly, not even thinking about her words. “The only person allowed to call me hime. You see blue eyes that match your own.” She looked up, past the Earth to the starry night sky behind it. “I… I see the night sky.”  
  
  
  
“But, that’s not…” Serenity tried to argue.  
  
  
  
“No! I will have none of it!” Asuna roared, causing Serenity to back up a step nervously. “I. Am. _Not_. In. Love. With. Endymion!” She glared at her past self. “I am and always will be in love with Kirito-kun, and absolutely _nothing_ you say will ever change my mind.”  
  
  
  
Serenity could only stare in wonder. She looked almost like a child who was being scolded by their parent. There were tears in her eyes, and it wasn’t obvious, but the girl had given up.  
  
  
  
“I will marry him the first chance I am able. I will not be left behind! Not because of you.” Asuna’s glare was heated. “I will not leave his side. Not ever.”  
  
  
  
Serenity gave her a searching look for a moment and then gave a bittersweet chuckle. “And perhaps, that’s what needs to be,” she agreed sadly. “I can see it in your eyes, that you don’t want to see what might have been.”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded. “You two had your chance, but this isn’t back then, this is now,” she said firmly. “I may be your reincarnation, but I am _not_ you. Besides, there is nothing to say that Endymion’s reincarnation hasn’t found someone since he was reborn. It wouldn’t be fair to him and whoever he decided to spend his new life with.”  
  
  
  
Serenity nodded. “No, it wouldn’t,” she said with a sigh. She then gave an impish smile. “So, why don’t you tell me about the one who has caught your eye?”  
  
  
  
Asuna blinked and then flushed. “Oh no,” she said. “You are _not_ living vicariously through me. No way, no how.”  
  
  
  
“Ah, but you need to remember, Asuna the First,” Serenity said with a chuckle. “You might be a reincarnation, and are different from me in many ways. But that doesn’t change one little fact. I am still as much you, as you are as much me.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito hadn’t been able to fall asleep that night, not easily. He was worried about Asuna’s ability to keep fighting. He knew that she wanted to be herself. But how could she simply be Asuna when she had memories of another lifetime in the back of her mind. He would help her through it. But he couldn’t help her if she didn’t let him.  
  
  
  
Not even thinking about it, he began to hum that tune his brother was so fond of. He’d “Within my dreams I’ll touch the sky. But I still realize,” Kirito began combing his fingers through her hair again. “I won’t survive the fight without you by my side…” His grip tightened. “You are the light when I lose my way. I’ll always be right next to you; I’ll give you everything I have…”  
  
  
  
He finally followed her into dreams. Which were filled with her and the things they could do, once they escaped Sword Art Online.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna started awake, blinking several times not long before Kirito had finally dropped off. She’d heard the words again. This time much more clearly. The words weren’t wrong, per se; they weren’t the words she remembered. But the words weren’t _wrong_. That much she knew.  
  
  
  
How she loved this boy. She didn’t know when her feelings had changed. But she really didn’t care. Kirito was the only one she’d ever want to be with in this life. She didn’t want to be like her mother. Successful but cold and alone.  
  
  
  
She wanted a home filled with warmth and love. Large, with children underfoot, and grandchildren too. “I’m being sappy. I shouldn’t be thinking of such things at a time like this.” She settled herself against her slumbering partner, basking in the warmth his virtual body gave off and closed her eyes, resting her head on his chest. She really hadn’t known Kirito long enough to even contemplate marrying him. Dating him maybe, but certainly not actively thinking about spending the rest of her life with him.  
  
  
  
But she’d be damned if she let him leave her behind. “I’ll not let anything happen to you.” She whispered with a small smile. “And I won’t give you reason to leave me anywhere.” A weight seemed to lift from her shoulders and Asuna smiled as she let herself fall back to sleep, her grip on him tightening.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna found herself humming that tune that Serenity had been in her dream, slowly, the way her partner always had as she made breakfast the next morning. She flitted around the kitchen like a fairy happily as the oven ticked down to zero. At the ding, she pulled the large pot out and began parsing out what was inside onto two plates. When it was empty she put the pot into the sink and filled it with water before placing the second pot into the oven and setting the timer again.  
  
  
  
Hopefully, Kirito would enjoy what she had planned for lunch.  
  
  
  
“Asuna, where are you?” She heard Kirito call from the bottom of the stairs.  
  
  
  
“In the kitchen.” Asuna called back, “You’re just in time. I just took breakfast out of the oven.” She smiled as Kirito entered the kitchen. “The plates are on the table.” She pointed to the only table in the room.  
  
  
  
Kirito yawned widely as he went to the improvised stove. “Would you like some Tea with breakfast?” he asked.  
  
  
  
“Sure.” Asuna agreed easily.  
  
  
  
On autopilot, Kirito set the kettle to boil and pulled several things from his inventory in preparation. After several moments he poured two cups and carried them to the table and set the cups down before sitting himself in one of the chairs. He yawned again, before taking a sip from his cup and looked down at the plate in front of him. “Looks good, like always.”  
  
  
  
Asuna blushed. “You should eat before it gets cold.”  
  
  
  
“What about you?” Kirito asked, raising his eyebrows questioningly.  
  
  
  
Asuna chuckled. “I need to finish making our lunches.”  
  
  
  
“And those troublesome memories?” Kirito prompted.  
  
  
  
“Should be no more troubling.” Asuna leaned forward and hesitantly kissed his cheek. “There should be nothing more, at least for this floor. They’ll still crop up and bother me at some points, but after this floor, I don’t think they will be nearly as troublesome.” She reassured him.  
  
  
  
“So then, we should be able to finish the Adonis Quest?” He asked.  
  
  
  
She nodded as the oven dinged again and Asuna got back up to retrieve what would be their lunch.  
  
  
  
Kirito was struck by how very domestic this all was. And Asuna had told him that he was the one to teach her to appreciate the simple things in life. How had they fallen into this routine? And why did he find himself wishing it would always be this way? He chuckled.  
  
  
  
“What’s so funny, Kirito-kun?” Asuna turned to look at him in confusion.  
  
  
  
“You would make a wonderful wife for someone.” Kirito looked wistful almost wishful. “Someday.”  
  
  
  
Asuna blushed. “Wife?” She turned away, mumbling to herself, blushing in spite of herself, “Only if you’re the husband, Kirito-kun.”  
  
  
  
Kirito didn’t show any sign of hearing her as he dug into his breakfast. But Asuna didn’t mind as she swiftly packed their lunches for the day. Then she went back to the table where Kirito had already started eating.  
  
  
  
The awkwardness of the night before was gone as if it had never been. And Asuna couldn’t be more grateful for it. She hated when she and Kirito weren’t united. It was unsettling and could possibly be quite dangerous. “So, other than the Adonis quest, what will we be doing?” She asked as she sat back down across from her partner at the table.  
  
  
  
“I had thought that we might go looking for the field boss.” Kirito replied as he put his utensils down and picking up his cup. “Perhaps we can even scout it.” Kirito took a sip of the piping hot tea.  
  
  
  
“That sounds like a good plan for the day.” Asuna agreed. “As nice as the wine country is, I’m starting to wish we could get moving.” She took a small bite and washed it down with some tea. “I’d like to find the Labyrinth too. Maybe see what kind of mobs there are.”  
  
  
  
“That might be doable, depending on how long it takes to find and beat the Field Boss.” Kirito cautioned.  
  
  
  
Asuna pouted. “Well, I’ll not have any more trouble with this floor. And I doubt that I will have more than just crazy ideas to deal with now.” Then she shrugged. “We should head out as soon as we finish.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded in agreement. He wasn’t about to argue with his partner. “We will. I would not leave you behind unless you forced me to.” He was glad that Asuna was back to her normal self.  
  
  
  
Asuna’s smile was rather sharp. “I will not ever leave your side Kirito-kun, not by choice.” She sighed. “You are my best friend, and I don’t trust anyone else with your safety.”

 


	34. The Daily Grind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a lot of progress is made.

Kirito and Asuna dodged in two different directions as [The Gryphon Lord] screeched, diving at them from high in the sky. [The Gryphon Lord] was the field boss of floor thirteen, (huge, with the front half of the body of a white feathered bird with wings and the rear pf a lion) and Asuna couldn’t help but think that the boss had been designed with game mechanics in mind that never actually made it into the game. If that was due to time constraints or simply because the coding hadn’t been done properly, Asuna didn’t know, and neither was it likely that Kirito would.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed as he watched the Field Boss move, they were trying to scout the field boss themselves, to learn its patterns. At the moment, it was just him and Asuna; they weren’t planning to actually fight the damned thing. “I think I’m missing something,” he muttered to himself as he jumped to the side again. The ground where he had once stood exploded, sending debris everywhere.  
  
  
  
Asuna managed to clip the tip of one of [Gryphon’s] wings, but her attack didn’t do very much at all. She had to jump away almost as soon as she landed on the ground, otherwise the boss’s front claw would have grabbed her. She was quick to get back out of the boss’s range. “Kirito-kun, I don’t think this is working!” She called, feelings of fear raising in her throat.  
  
  
  
“I agree, let’s retreat. I don’t think we will learn anything useful on our own!” Kirito called back, ducking under another of the Field Boss’s attacks. Now they just had to figure out how.  
  
  
  
It took them both another few minutes to successfully retreat from the area that belonged to the flying Field Boss.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna helped Kirito into a chair at a table at the tavern they had retreated to and pulled one of her few remaining potions out of her quick menu. “Here, you need it.”  
  
  
  
“I’m not the only one,” Kirito groaned as he took the potion. “As much as I enjoy boss battles, that was not fun.” He bit into the cork and pulled. He downed the entire contents of the bottle in one swallow. “I still hate how these taste…” he grumbled before pulling a potion out of his own quick menu and pushed it into her hand. “You need this just as much. How many do you have left, do you know?”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded, taking the potion for herself. “That wasn’t a boss battle.” she snarked as she uncorked the bottle and did exactly as her partner had done, downing the contents in one go. “That would have been a slaughter had we not found a way to retreat when we did.” Her eyes narrowed as she reached for a particular memory. “I think Kayaba may have designed the boss with a mechanic in mind that didn’t make it into SAO.”  
  
  
  
“You mean he forgot to modify the boss when it became clear that he wouldn’t be able to get whatever the mechanic was working?” Kirito let his head rest against the counter before sitting up. “I’ll send him an inquiry.”  
  
  
  
“I’ll make sure to mark it on our map.” Asuna agreed with a nod as she opened her own menu. Neither of them were happy with how scouting the Field Boss had gone. There was something off about its patterns. They had both seen it. “On the topic of Potions, I’m almost out.”  
  
  
  
Kirito opened his own menu and began typing a message to his older brother. “Perhaps we should eat before we do anything else.” He suggested. “And then we need to restock before we leave the [Safe Zone] again.”  
  
  
  
His partner hummed in silent agreement. “We should probably gather some of the others and try to scout that damned thing again.” Asuna said as she went looking for the lunches she packed for them to share that morning.  
  
  
  
“That’s not going to be fun…” Kirito grumbled as he sent the message off.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Griselda eyed the horse in front of her. “I think I want to try something.” She opened her menu to check if she had an open [Skill Slot].  
  
  
  
Grimlock watched on a few feet away, “What are you going to do dear?”  
  
  
  
“I’ve always enjoyed horseback riding, remember, Grimlock?” Griselda grinned, “Maybe we could all try fighting from horseback? Like the Knights of the West?” She asked eagerly.  
  
  
  
Yoruko’s eyes widened, “That actually sounds like fun!” She clapped her hands as she stepped forward to pet one of the horses’ nose. “I’d be willing to try.”  
  
  
  
Her boyfriend, Caynz nodded, “I’d like to try too.”  
  
  
  
“Grimlock, I know this scares you, but we won’t be fighting anything until we are somewhat proficient in riding.” Griselda smiled, “So, don’t worry about that, OK?”  
  
  
  
Grimlock smiled, “Alright.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Luna looked through her materials as she sat in her stall. She was thankful that she didn’t have any customers just yet as she wanted to start a side project. What should she make for her new friends Silica and Yuuna? Perhaps an earring or ring of agility for Silica and… a bracer for Yuuna?  
  
  
  
Luna turned to her status screen, to look at her [Skill List]. She had [Metal Refining], [Dagger], [Accessories Creation], [Tools Appraisal], and her new one, [Sales Appraisal]. She was level twenty-one. And she knew that she could go much higher than where she was. But she felt safer on Floor four. Going out to grind was starting to bring diminishing returns. But she could always head up to the next floor with the [Teleport Pad] if she wanted to fight. It wasn’t as if she was married to the floor she was on after all.  
  
  
  
Luna huffed as she picked up the [Swordchete] at her side and slipped it back into her inventory. “Not a [Bracer] for Yuuna… maybe a bracelet instead?” That could work. Her friend wasn’t really a fighter really. She was too gentle.  
  
  
  
She started looking through her mats again, this time with a better idea of what she was going to make. Luna chose several and pulled them out, cracking her fingers before pulling out her hammer. This was going to be fun! Maybe she should make Silica both a ring and earring…  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Boxy put his fist through the mob before him, killing it. He wiped the sweat from his brow as he looked around. Bunbo was just finishing his own opponent and Binah was bashing at her own.  
  
  
  
They were still five or so levels below the rest of their guild, but all four reincarnated Youma didn’t mind. They did want to join the [Front Lines] at some point, but they were in no real hurry.  
  
  
  
Rikoukeidar shook her head as she pulled out a canteen of water and took a drink. “This is hard work.”  
  
  
  
“But still fun,” Boxy agreed as he pulled out his own drink. “Once we’ve cleared the area, why don’t we get lunch?”  
  
  
  
“That sounds like a very good idea,” Binah walked over to Boxy, “I’m getting hungry. How about everyone else?”  
  
  
  
The other three reincarnated Youma all nodded in agreement.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba walked into Kirito’s room, smiling when he saw his Aunt was sitting at the boy’s side. “Aunt Midori.” He greeted quietly.  
  
  
  
Midori looked up, “Aki, how have you been?”  
  
  
  
“I’m much better than before.” Kayaba replied, sitting across from Midori. “Partly because I was afraid of something that I really should not have been.” He felt really childish for being so scared.  
  
  
  
“And Kazu?” Midori asked.  
  
  
  
“Is on floor thirteen, He is nearing level thirty and was safe, last I checked.” Kayaba replied.  
  
  
  
There was a knock on the door. “Who is it?” Midori called.  
  
  
  
“It’s Rinko.” a demur voice replied.  
  
  
  
“Come in Rinko,” Kayaba got up and opened the door for her.  
  
  
  
In Rinko’s arms was a huge domestic cat. “Ēkate.” Kayaba took the purring cat into his arms and let his girlfriend into the room.  
  
  
  
“I’d forgotten about this monster of a cat.” Midori smiled fondly as Rinko found a seat and Kayaba returned to his own. She reached over the bed to pet the white and black cat.  
  
  
  
Ēkate jumped from Kayaba’s lap onto the bed, next to the boy.  
  
  
  
“Ah, I see you recognize my brother.” Kayaba chuckled, smiling as the cat curled up on Kazu’s chest, purring deeply. “You missed him didn’t you? Is this what you’ve been making such a racket about?”  
  
  
  
Ēkate gave Kayaba a smug look.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito paused as he looked through his inventory. “Huh? What’s this?” he wondered, pulling his new drop out of his inventory. It was a long tube with several buttons on one side.  
  
  
  
“I seem to have one too.” Asuna muttered, pulling one out herself. “What are…” She reached for _her_ memories and found the answer. “Huh, I think they are Multitools.”  
  
  
  
“Multitools?” Kirito looked up from his to look at her. “Is it something from _her_?”  
  
  
  
“Yeah. Since SAO is supposed to be a simulation, I suppose it makes sense that Heathcliff would include these.” Asuna examined the tool in her hand. “I don’t see how this could be really useful though. Maybe your brother was being a perfectionist when he included them?”  
  
  
  
“Perhaps Skills will appear that has to do with what they can do on higher floors.” Kirito mused.  
  
  
  
“Perhaps,” Asuna agreed. “It’s not really something _she_ would really know though.”  
  
  
  
“That is likely true, seeing as _She_ is supposedly a princess.” Kirito gave his partner a closer look, “She is a princess, right?”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded. “She is exactly who Heathcliff told us she was.” She sighed, “I was kind of hoping that he was wrong…”  
  
  
  
Kirito gave her a hug. “I’m not really surprised; you are my Asuna-hime, after all.” He gave her a cheeky grin.  
  
  
  
Asuna giggled, and found that she couldn’t stop. “Kirito-kun…” She smacked his shoulder, “You are so bad…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Silica centered herself as she glared at the mob. This was her first encounter with a Youma. Yuuna was with her, and now that the girl was only three levels under her, Silica was sure that she’d be just fine. “Ready, Yuuna?” She asked.  
  
  
  
“I don’t know how much help I’ll be but I guess so…” The budding Bard agreed slowly, pulling her mace from its ring on her belt. “These Youma are scary.”  
  
  
  
Silica nodded, “They are, I agree. But we can kill them.” She reminded her new friend.  
  
  
  
Yuuna nodded. “Then we should probably do our best, right?” She asked the younger girl.  
  
  
  
Silica grinned. “Right.”  
  
  
  
As if hearing a signal that only the two of them could hear, Silica and Yuuna both jumped forward, towards the Youma they had been confronted with.  
  
  
  
The Youma screeched a challenge to the two players, its claws shooting forward at high speeds.  
  
  
  
Silica smirked as she slashed with her short sword, cutting off one of the mob’s claws, “Yuuna, Switch!”  
  
  
  
Yuuna did a flip and put all her weight behind her mace, falling on the mob’s other arm, flattening the appendage. “Not going to let you kill us.” She muttered, “Silica, switch!”  
  
  
  
Silica slid passed Yuuna and cut the flattened arm off at the shoulder.  
  
  
  
The Youma screamed in pain, but when it saw the smiles on Yuuna and Silica’s faces it faltered. Its arm fell to pieces as it lagged.  
  
  
  
Silica smirked, bringing down her dagger again, relieving the Youma of its head.  
  
  
  
Yuuna sighed, “That was fun.”  
  
  
  
Silica grinned back, “It was.” She checked her drops. “[Youma Dust]? I wonder what you can do with [Youma Dust]...”  
  
  
  
“Well, we know a [Blacksmith],” Yuuna pointed out. “Why don’t we ask Luna?”  
  
  
  
“That is a wonderful idea.” Silica agreed. It was time to head back anyway.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito took himself behind the Bar when they got back their Inn.  
  
  
  
“What are you doing, Kirito-kun?” Asuna asked curiously.  
  
  
  
“I’m trying to see if there’s any alcohol,” He replied his head disappearing under the bar. “I know that there are recipes that require it.”  
  
  
  
“Did you get one as a drop?” Asuna asked, her face lighting up in excitement.  
  
  
  
“I did, but I’m not the one with the skill.” He kept rummaging in the drawers and cubards.  
  
  
  
“Should I be planning something special?” Asuna leaned over the counter to look down at her partner.  
  
  
  
“I hope so, but I’m not sure how many skill points you need to cook this one.” Kirito gave her a sheepish grin and a shrug. “But I need to find the alcohol before we can even think of looking at how much skill you need.”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded, “In that case, I’m going to make sure the pots are clean, and maybe put on some tea.” She got up. “Though, I doubt it will be as good as yours.”  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled, “If you say so, Asuna.” He called after her. “Aha! Found some!” He popped back up, holding a dusty bottle over his head as if he was Link from The Legend of Zelda.  
  
  
  
Asuna giggled as she opened the kitchen door. “Then come on.” She held a hand out to her partner. “Let’s make dinner, together.”  
  
  
  
Kirito grinned, “Yeah,” he agreed, taking her hand. “Let’s make dinner together.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba logged back into Sword Art Online, resuming his role as Heathcliff. Opening his menu, he checked his messages as he walked into the area with the console where Cardinal was waiting for him. There was a message from both Kazu and Lady Beryl. He’d have to get back to them before he got in too deep with Cardinal fixing the system.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Liz looked at the empty skill slot that had just opened up for her. “I wonder what I should choose…” She mused, she had [Mace], [Metal Refining], [One Handed Weapon Forging], and [Sales Negotiation]. She looked through the [Blacksmithing] skills. “There’s [Polearm Creation], [Blunt Weapon Creation], [Slash], and [Thrust Weapon Forging], and then there is the [Armor Forging].” Not to mention the [Purchase Negotiation], [Metal Armor Repairing], and [Equipment Appraisal] that she would also need to be the best blacksmith in the game.  
  
  
  
Nezha poked Liz’s shoulder. “What’s up?”  
  
  
  
“Oh, I just gained another skill slot.” Liz replied. “I’m not sure what skill to pick. There are nine skills to choose from, but I hadn’t put any thought into my choice because last time I checked I still had three levels to go to get the skill slot.” She sighed. “I want to be able to forge all the weapons available in game…”  
  
  
  
“Well, you’re friends with Kirito and Asuna, right?” Nezha asked. “I think the next two skills you should pick up are the [Slash and Thrust Weapon Forging]. Though which you choose first is up to you…” He looked thoughtful as he came upon an idea.  
  
  
  
“What?” Liz asked in confusion.  
  
  
  
“Or, you could always go farm for this item.” He pulled out a crystal bottle. “These are drops from the [Forest Elves] that allow you to store a Skill that you don’t want to lose progress in.” Nezha explained. “Every [Brave] has one.”  
  
  
  
“Can I have more than one?” Liz asked, intrigued as she took the bottle to inspect it.  
  
  
  
“You know, I have no idea.” Nezha frowned. “So, what to do you think, want to go back to the third floor? We are over leveled so it should be relatively safe.”  
  
  
  
“Let me think about it for a few hours.” Liz replied, “I’ll get back to you after lunch ok?”  
  
  
  
Nezha nodded in agreement. He could wait. Their teacher had to make her own choices.And Nezha wasn’t about to try pushing her into doing anything.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Liz bashed the [Forest Elf] over the head with her mace again. This was the third Elf they’d seen. “This works for some after lunch exercise,” she huffed.  
  
  
  
“I’m glad you’re having fun,” Nezha grinned as the elf exploded. “So, did you get it?”  
  
  
  
“I think so.” Liz pulled out the crystal bottle Nezha had shown her that morning. “So, I just put a skill in here and I can swap them whenever I want?”  
  
  
  
“Something like that.” Nezha agreed. “Asuna was the first one to get it. They kept it secret for a while too.”  
  
  
  
“But they did tell Argo eventually, because it’s in Argo’s guides now.” Liz frowned. “I wonder why they kept it secret…” She wondered aloud to herself.  
  
  
  
“You could always ask them when you see them next,” Nezha pointed out as another [Forest Elf] spawned.  
  
  
  
“I think that’s what I’ll do.” Liz agreed as she jumped on the Elf.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito was back behind the bar in the inn when the door opened and in came some of the [Fuurinkazan] Guild that his friend Klein was the Guild Master of. “Hey, what happened to the other four?” Kirito asked as he manipulated the menu he had found he could use from behind the bar on accident. “Klein, what are you doing here anyway?”  
  
  
  
“Wanted a better look at where you were staying actually.” Klein shrugged. “How did you get behind the bar? Aren’t you a bit young to be there?”  
  
  
  
“You would think so wouldn’t you?” Kirito shot back with with a smirk. “Anyway, I haven’t gotten the Bar part of the Tavern working yet. But Asuna is in the kitchen. Or were you looking for a room to crash in?”  
  
  
  
Klein shrugged as his guildmates and IRL friends found a table to sit at and the door opened again. It was Agil.  
  
  
  
“Woah, nice place.” Agil whistled.  
  
  
  
Kirito blushed slightly, “Thanks Agil, how are you?”  
  
  
  
Agil blinked, “Kirito? I wasn’t aware that you could own a place like this...”  
  
  
  
Kirito shrugged, “I didn’t know either before I found that deed.” He held his fist out and bumped fists with the huge man. “This place is pretty cozy, and it was abandoned when I found it. I chose it because I didn’t want to even deal with NPCs at the time.” He waved a hand, “I’m afraid that I don’t have the right skills to run this place, but find a seat.”  
  
  
  
There was the sound of the door opening again, and this time, three female players walked in. Beryl, Argo and Persephone.  
  
  
  
“Did you know that you’ve got an attached stable, [Commander]?” Persephone asked with a grin as she, Beryl and Argo sat at the bar.  
  
  
  
“Really? I hadn’t noticed,” Kirito rolled his eyes, “Persephone, do not call me that.” he reminded her blandly as he continued to struggle with the Inn’s Bartender Menu.  
  
  
  
“Settling down with A-chan, Kii-bou?” Argo asked with a teasing smile.  
  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes again. “No, this is just our base for the floor.”  
  
  
  
“Have you thought of a name for the Inn yet?” Beryl snickered.  
  
  
  
Kirito shot her a glare that had no heat in it. “No, but I don’t see how that matters.” He shook his head as he focused back on the menu he was trying to decipher.  
  
  
  
He didn’t even notice the door opening again, admitting his older brother this time. “Aha, so that’s how it works!” He looked up a moment later, when he heard his brother’s voice.  
  
  
  
“Kirito, what are you doing?” Heathcliff asked mildly with some amusement, raising an eyebrow.  
  
  
  
“What does it look like I’m doing, Heathcliff?” he snarked back as he followed the instructions on the menu under the bar and set a glass of iced tea in front of his brother. “I didn’t want to be bothered when I first picked this place out for Asuna and I to stay at.”  
  
  
  
“Ah, you didn’t want to be around the crowds that would come through the [Teleport Pad].” Heathcliff grinned. “I understand not wanting to be crowded.”

 


	35. Outside Disasters and Switching Locations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Looks like the Players need to be moved...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is one of my favorite chapters to write so far. And I got to showcase how some of the skills work IRL~!
> 
> Mercury didn't mean to insult Kizmel's ability, she's a medic. She's worried about how the 10,000 year stasis will affect her ability to fight. She probably should have picked her words better.
> 
> Oh, and look! That's where the forgotten things go...

Yuuki Kyouko grumbled under her breath as she continued to the meeting her husband had set up for the two of them to meet with Kayaba Akihiko. She didn’t hold a very high opinion of the man to begin with, seeing as he trapped her daughter and nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine other players in that Death Game. To her, he was simply a madman.  
  
  
She hadn’t been paying any attention to the follow up interviews, where the man really didn’t explain, in her mind, anything new. Kyouko thought she knew everything that was going on and had developed her views based on what was really incomplete information and she was so set in her ways that she refused to rethink her conclusions and ignored any new data that was presented to her. Especially when it came to Sword Art Online.  
  
  
Shouzou sighed as he listened to his wife grumble. She had a very one sided view on a lot of things, like who their daughter was traveling with and what to do when Asuna woke up. He personally liked Kirito from what he’d seen.  
  
  
He may have yet to meet the boy’s family, but the boy himself seemed to act like the samurai of old protecting his Liege Lady. They looked to have an intimate friendship, but from what he could see, even with the game they were playing, everything on their part was innocent. So far.  
  
  
Shouzou had to keep from sighing. He wanted to meet the ones that young Kirito called family. But he could put that off, for the moment. He knew for a fact that Kayaba was doing his best to keep all the Players of Sword Art Online as safe as he could. Even if it didn’t seem like he was doing very much.  
  


* * *

  
  
Jadeite’s eyes narrowed as he looked over the plan that had slowly been coming together over the last few months. He’d been watching the two hospitals closely, but had refrained from actually trying anything so as to not attract the Senshi's attention. Something about Kayaba was… familiar. But Jadeite wasn’t sure why that was. “Morga, Balm.” He called, putting the thoughts of Kayaba out of his head.  
  
  
Two Youma appeared behind him. “Sir?” Morga asked curiously. Jadeite didn’t often call for named Youma like themselves.  
  
  
“It’s almost time to collect all the energy being generated by the Sword Art Online victims.” Jadeite smirked. “Flau.” he called for a third Youma.  
  
  
“Master?” she asked, appearing out of the shadows. He rarely called on her as well.  
  
  
“Go check on that Bastard Kunzite,” Jadeite instructed, “Wouldn’t want anything to happen to him during his own assignment.” He tsked, it was the bastard’s own fault for getting caught in Zoicite’s trap.  
  
  
Flau bowed, disappearing. She and the other Youma knew that there was a feud going on between the Generals, but it wasn’t any of her or her sisters’ concern.  
  


* * *

  
  
Zoicite looked up from his book, growling. “Flau, what is one of Jadeite’s vermin doing here?” he hissed angrily. He was still annoyed that Queen Beryl had shut down all of his operations.  
  
  
Flau smirked, “I take it there hasn’t been any change in your lover?” she taunted, secure in the knowledge that Zoicite could not retaliate.  
  
  
Zoicite returned to his book, “What do I care what kind of trouble your master will get into.” There was a frown on the man’s face.  
  
  
Flau disappeared a moment later. This wasn’t her problem after all.  
  


* * *

  
  
Ami looked up from her paperwork. Something in the air had changed. She reached for the Mercury Pen she had behind her ear. After a moment of nothing happening, she went back to work, more alert than she’d been before. She just knew that something was about to happen.  
  
  
Ami hurried through her work on this patient’s data and moved onto the next. She wanted to be finished before anything happened. She just hoped it was possible.  
  


* * *

  
  
On another floor, Chiba Mamoru looked up from his own work. The air was thicker than before. His hand went to the inconspicuous rose in his breast pocket to reassure himself that it was still there.  
  
  
This could not be good. Nothing good would be happening tonight…  
  


* * *

  
  
Jadeite smirked viciously as the two groups of Youma began to gather in front of the two hospitals that he’d chosen to take from first. “Ready?” He asked, watching through the two portals he’d made to take his Youma to the Hospitals.  
  
  
Balm and Morga stood in front of the two groups, having been chosen to be the leaders of the two different attack forces. “We are ready sir.” Balm confirmed.  
  
  
“We are ready on this side as well.” Morga spoke a moment later.  
  
  
“Good.” Jadeite breathed. He took a moment to savor the taste of his impending victory. “Begin the attack.”  
  


* * *

  
  
Morga turned away from the closing portal and watched as her strike team pulled on the disguises that they’d been provided. Silently, they all entered the hospital. She had quite the vicious smile on her face when no one stopped them on the way to the long term care unit, where the players of Sword Art Online were being cared for.  
  
  
Each of her subordinates took one floor. She’d warned each of them to go slowly and to not drain very much, at least to begin with. They had to be careful, to make sure that they didn’t attract the Senshi’s attentions. To do so would prove to be… problematic.  
  
  
While the other, nameless Youma were roaming the other floors of the Long Term Care Ward, Morga herself headed to the room that felt the most magical in the entire place.  
  
  
There were in fact, a lot of people in the ward that felt magically active, though how that could be, Morga didn’t know. Jadeite had assured her that the ability and knowledge of awakening one’s magic had been lost to the mists of time; in the same timeframe as the fall of Atlantis and The Fall of the Silver Empire.  
  
  
But if that was so, then why could she sense so many Magic Users? In fact, most of the patients in this Ward felt like the Magic Users who made up the majority of the Silver Army!  
  


* * *

  
  
At the other hospital’s location, Balm was contemplating the same thing, and cautioning her own task force to be just as careful. She also had her own target. There was one girl in this whole place that was the most intriguing human she’d ever found.  
  
  
The girl was on the top most floor of the Long Term Care Ward in one of the corner rooms. None of the Youma could read, but that didn’t really matter for this mission. The girl reminded her of someone that she hated.  
  
  
None of the Youma could have known how badly this operation would go.  
  


* * *

  
  
Kizmel yawned as she returned to Asuna’s room. It was her turn to guard the Princess since she and Tilnel had a rotation of a week. Kizmel was only just slightly jealous of her sister, because it was Tilnel’s week to spend with the Captain, and thus the young Commander.  
  
  
She’d just sat down in the chair at the table with the laptop, a tall cup of black coffee in hand to help her through the Midnight Watch when the door creaked open, revealing what looked like a normal doctor to do a routine check of Asuna’s vitals.  
  
  
Thanks to the spells that made her nondescript, the doctor never noticed her. But, there was something off about the doctor tonight. In an instant, Kizmel’s fatigue was shoved to the back of her mind and the Dark Elf was fully alert, her eyes narrow as she watched the doctor move about the room. “Something is not right here…” she muttered to herself.  
  
  
Kizmel turned to check on her charge and became quite alarmed when she noticed how pale the girl had become and how shallowly she was breathing. In an instant, Kizmel had her Scimitar in hand and let out a loud battle cry. At the same time, her sword began to glow and she leaped forward, delivering a powerful Slant attack.  
  
  
Kizmel paled when the so called ‘Doctor’ fell to dust. “Youma!” She realized, sounding the alarm that had been installed to signify a Youma attack.  
  
  
Balm was dead.  
  
  
Kizmel left the room to stand guard. Where there was one, there had to be more.  
  


* * *

  
  
Ami’s head snapped up when she heard her Phone/Communicator blare an alert. She looked around the locker room to make sure that she was alone. “Mercury Power, Make Up!” She called almost silently.  
  
  
In a flash of light, Mizuno Ami was gone and Senshi Mercury stood in her place. Six ice daggers floated behind her as if they were wings of ice. She pulled out her computer and with a touch to her right earring, her visor was in place.  
  
  
It was bad. Two of the Hospitals she’d been monitoring were being attacked at the same time! One Youma was already gone, but there were still several more that needed to be taken care of. She opened her Communicator and hit the [Call All] button. “The SAO Players are being targeted again! I think it was deliberate this time!” Mercury closed her communicator and began her hunt but not before she connected her communicator to her bluetooth headset so that she could coordinate the elimination of the Youma.  
  
  
She wasn’t about to let any of the SAO Players become victims of the Youma!  
  


* * *

  
  
Mamoru cursed as he ducked into the Men’s locker room on his current floor and took a moment to make sure he was alone before putting a hand to the Rose in his breast pocket. There was a flash of light and Chiba Mamoru disappeared. In his place was Tuxedo Mask.  
  
  
The name still left a bad taste in his mouth, because this wasn’t when he was at his most powerful. But there wasn’t much he could do. The next moment, he was out of the locker room, starting his own hunt.  
  
  
Besides, his fiancée was right, as usual. It was much better to be underestimated.  
  


* * *

  
  
Across the city, Kayaba Akihiko’s ears perked up at the sound of an alarm. “Damn it!” He cursed. “I hope that this is simply an opportunistic attack, but with how public things have been, I can’t count on that.” Not only that, this was the second attack that he knew of, the first… his brother…  
  
  
Well, The Hub was ready to receive the Clearers and other important Players at any time. He’d have to set up the Blackout with Cardinal after the attack. But it would be easy enough to teleport Players who were out of the [Safe Zones] to the closest one to where they were to keep them safe. Moving his brother, Asuna and the others wouldn’t be too hard. At least, he hoped it wouldn’t be.  
  
  
That wasn’t the only thing either; he had to isolate all the Orange Players that showed signs of potentially becoming Reds.  
  
  
The question right now was if there were any Youma here right now. If there were, he knew that he was strong enough that he’d be able to kill one if he got the jump on it. But he didn’t want to get into an outright fight with any Youma, he didn’t have the right training in this life to do so. Kayaba knew exactly what the Youma were capable of.  
  
  
“I’d better go check on Kazu before I do anything else. Hopefully the Yuuki will understand why I have to postpone the meeting.” Kaya-- no, Heathcliff mused as he left the private waiting room that he used for such meetings. He needed to make sure that his younger brother wasn’t in any danger before he began his own Youma hunt. He just hoped that he wouldn’t see another Youma in that room.  
  
  
The door to his brother’s room was open. Heathcliff tried not to be seen himself as he looked into the space. His Aunt was slumped in a chair, skin pale. Suguha was breathing heavily, her skin pale from terror more than anything else, and Kazuto was barely breathing, his skin so pale that it was almost translucent. Heathcliff took a moment to scan the floor for dust before entering. “What happened Sugu?” he asked urgently, hoping that it wouldn’t be as he feared.  
  
  
Suguha looked up. “Aki,” she took a deep breath. “A doctor came in here acting strange. I don’t know what happened. But Kazu’s not breathing.”  
  
  
Heathcliff put a hand to his brother’s chest. It was faint, but the boy was indeed breathing. “He is breathing, Sugu.” He reassured her, “What about the cat that was here?”  
  
  
“It ran after the doctor, hissing.” Suguha replied. “I don’t know what happened… Aki?” She looked up at her oldest cousin in concern when he didn’t say anything.  
  
  
Heathcliff had gone silent, but shook his head. “Don’t worry Sugu, I’ll handle it.” He comforted her. He then turned and left the room again.  
  
  
Once he was out of his brother’s room, Heathcliff began running down the hallway. There were Youma here, and right now, it didn’t matter if he had a sword or not. He had his magic and was confident that he could handle any Youma that he came across, as long as he got the drop on them.  
  
  
It wasn’t long before he could hear the sounds of hissing and spitting and he smirked. He didn’t stop running as he breathed the Words of Power for Vacuum Blades, finishing as he rounded the corner.  
  
  
“Ēkate, move!” Heathcliff commanded as the Runes floating around him lit up and invisible blades of wind shot out of his outstretched hand.  
  
  
Ēkate jumped off of the suspicious doctor and Heathcliff watched with hard eyes as they crumpled to dust. Ēkate slinked up to Heathcliff and purred, rubbing against his older owner’s leg.  
  
  
Heathcliff smiled and took a moment to scratch the huge cat behind the ears. “Good boy Ēkate.” He whispered as he picked up the canister of energy that belonged to his family. “But there are more Youma to deal with.”  
  
  
The cat seemed to hiss angrily for a moment before turning, its tail flicking at the tip as he went back into hunting mode. He was a hunting cat with ancestors from the Saber Tigers of the real Aincrad. At least, that was the impression he’d given Heathcliff over the years.  
  
  
Heathcliff stalked after his cat, determined to not let anything occur to the rest of the patients under his purview.  
  
  
Morga was dead.  
  


* * *

  
  
Tuxedo Mask threw one of his roses at the Youma he was pursuing and it exploded, the explosion was small enough that it didn’t damage anything and just left a bunch of dust on the floor that would disappear in a few minutes. And that was the only good thing about fighting Youma, there wasn’t any clean up required.  
  
  
That was one down, but he didn’t know how many there were left. Now, where was the next one?  
  


* * *

  
  
Mars looked up at the second of the two hospitals that Mercury had indicated had been attacked. She ran in the front doors, but doubted that she’d be much help at all, since she only had fire spells at her fingertips.  
  
  
Thankfully fire spells weren’t the only thing she had to use. Mars checked her bag to make sure all her Ofuda were still there. It also helped that she enjoyed being a priestess. She enjoyed making Ofuda the most; they were useful in this kind of situation, in most situations really.  
  
  
She took the stairs at a dead run. It took her almost no time at all to get to the top floor. Senshi Mars almost tripped over a huge cat when she opened the stairs door. “What is a huge cat doing here?” She wondered.  
  
  
“I see you’ve met Ēkate,” an amused, familiar voice said from her left.  
  
  
“Captain, I’d say that it’s nice to see you again but under the circumstances…” Senshi Mars smiled weakly.  
  
  
Heathcliff nodded, “Any other time it would have been nice to see you.” He agreed easily, he remembered Heathcliff being something of a mentor to all the Inner Senshi, not just to the Princess.  
  
  
“How many Youma have you taken care of?” Mars asked as she began scratching behind the cat’s ears.  
  
  
The cat purred as they talked.  
  
  
“I’m surprised that you didn’t decide to keep watch from outside,” Heathcliff said, gesturing for Mars to follow him. “Aren’t all your spells fire based?”  
  
  
“They are.” Mars agreed, “But, according to Pluto, you know who all of us are.” She gave him a look.  
  
  
Heathcliff snorted. “You need to be more discrete.” He huffed, giving her a disapproving look.  
  
  
“And we’ve been working on that.” Mars allowed. “But my point stands, you know that I’m a priestess now, so I have a lot more options than I used too.” She pulled out a few of her Ofuda as proof.  
  
  
Heathcliff gave her a smirk as the cat raced ahead. “Let’s follow the cat, shall we?”  
  


* * *

  
  
Senshi Venus cursed as she finally arrived at Ami and Mamoru’s hospital. There was really no time for any kind of preparation. Venus really hated when the Dark Kingdom did this. The General behind this move likely wasn’t even here! At either of the hospitals.  
  
  
Jadeite’s fingerprints were all over it. How did he keep getting away? Venus shook her head and pushed such thoughts away as she made her way inside. She attached the headset that Ami had somehow made work with their communicators. They each had one that was connected to both their civilian phones and Senshi Communicators.  
  
  
She turned it on and pressed the button that would connect her to Mercury. “I’m here, what’s the situation?”  
  
  
“Venus! Oh thank goodness.” Mercury’s voice sounded relieved as it came over her earpiece. “Kizmel killed the first of I still don’t know how many Youma. Then she hit the alarm. She’s been standing guard over the Princess’ room since then. I can see three on my screen now, but It’s impossible to say how many there were to begin with.”  
  
  
“Do we know how strong they are?” Venus asked.  
  


* * *

  
  
Mercury opened a message she’d gotten from Kizmel, silently thanking the Queens of Old that the spell used by the army could connect to her computer. “Kizmel says that their defense is rather weak, so don’t let them land a hit. There are, sorry, were, apparently monsters in Castle Aincrad that were configured that way. So, as long as you get the drop on one, Venus, you should be able to destroy it with one hit.”  
  
  
She looked up from where she’d set up her ‘Command Center’, a Nurse’s Station on the top most floor of the LTC Ward, close to Asuna’s room. “As you know, my spells, other than Aqua Mist and Sharbon Spray are quite destructive. I can direct you to where the Youma are, but I think I should stay out of combat, this time.”  
  


* * *

  
  
“Sounds good,” Venus agreed as she took the stairs three at a time, “I’m in the stairwell, just tell me which of the Youma is closest.”  
  
  
“There should be one close enough to the stairs that you can get the drop on it if you are quiet enough.” Mercury said over the earpiece.  
  
  
Venus stopped at the next door and listened for a moment. She could indeed hear a soft voice cackling over all the ‘Free Energy’ there was. Venus had to grit her teeth and struggled not to snarl as she eased the door open to get a good look at her target. She gripped the sword at her side: Guardian of the Princess and lunged.  
  
  
She took the Youma by surprise and neatly bisected the monster, causing it to fall to dust. In a moment of rare curiosity, she knelt and picked up some of the dust, letting the dust fall through her fingers. “Huh, A- Mercury, wouldn’t Youma be considered some kind of golem, since they seem to be made of earth?” She asked.  
  
  
Mercury blinked. “I suppose. I’ll look up the definition of what a golem is once all the Youma are taken care of.”  
  
  
Venus heard the faint clacking of keys. “Making a note of reminder?” She asked knowingly, that was just like her friend.  
  
  
“Yes.” Mercury replied.  
  
  
Venus got up. “Alright, find me the next one.”  
  
  
“There are only two left Venus. One is close to Tux and the other is right above your head, so get back in that stairwell.”  
  
  
“Copy that,” Venus reentered the stairwell, closing the door softly behind her. “How many floors am I going up?”  
  


* * *

  
  
Outside the hospital, Jupiter was looking through her binoculars. She turned on her headset. “Mars, you copy?” She asked, hating that the only spell she knew would start fires if she used it in doors.  
  
  
“I copy, have you found any Youma?” Mars asked. “Hang on, the Captain is here and he has a question for you.”  
  
  
Jupiter grimaced, “Alright.” It wasn’t that she didn’t want to talk to him, it was that she wasn’t sure what he was going to ask of her.  
  
  
“Jupiter.” Heathcliff’s calm voice sounded over her earpiece.  
  
  
“Captain,” she acknowledged, feeling rather nervous.  
  
  
“Do you have a computer in front of you?” He asked.  
  
  
“Unfortunately I don’t,” Jupiter bit back a curse. “What floor are you on?”  
  
  
“The third.” Heathcliff replied.  
  
  
“Right now I have eyes on a suspicious looking doctor on the fourth floor, but I haven’t been able to spot anymore.” Jupiter sighed.  
  
  
“We’ll take care of it.” Heathcliff replied.  
  
  
Jupiter sighed in relief as the line went dead. “Perhaps I should go find the security office and set up there instead of staying out here.” She put her binoculars away and headed for the fire escape of the building she was currently on the roof of. She was good at baking. But in this day and age it was useful to be good with computers as well, so, before the war of attrition with Queen Beryl had really gotten started, she’d taken a few classes and discovered that she actually had a fair bit of talent.  
  
  
Not enough to make a job of it by making video games or movies, but Jupiter was good enough that she’d be fine in the Security room of a hospital.  
  


* * *

  
  
The Security guards were reluctant, but let Jupiter into the room. She was the second scariest of the Inner System Senshi after Venus, simply because she was so strong. Sitting down and tuning into the cameras of the LTC Ward, the Senshi began to shift through the screens.  
  
  
Noticing something on the third floor Jupiter reconnected with Senshi Mars. “All right, I can see everything on every floor of the LTC Ward.”  
  
  
“Where are you?” Mars asked.  
  
  
“Security room on the ground floor.” Jupiter replied, “I should be able to coordinate our countermeasures much better from here.”  
  
  
“Roger that,” Mars fell silent as Jupiter eyed the monitors.  
  


* * *

  
  
Mars let her hand fall. “Captain, I am loathe to ask, but why didn’t you let us know that you were around before now?”  
  
  
Heathcliff gave her a wane smile, “You have not offended me, Senshi Mars. In truth, I have only recently been able to get my magic to work consistently.” He huffed, “I was the Captain of the Royal Guard and Commander of the Military. Yet, had I made myself known, you’d have expected me to be out patrolling. And while I gladly would have…”  
  
  
“Since your magic was only working half of the time, if that, you’d have been more of a liability than a help, and we would have been putting you into a situation that you could not consistently deal with.” Mars finished for him. “And since we were teens at the beginning of all this, we’d have demanded that of you, whether you’d gotten your magic to work all the time or not.”  
  
  
“Exactly,” His ears twitched as the sounds of hissing and spitting reached them. “Looks like Ēkate has found our next Youma.”  
  
  
Mars ran after him. She wanted to see his magic in action.  
  


* * *

  
  
In Asuna’s hospital Venus met up with Tuxedo Mask. “Did you manage to get the last one?” she asked urgently.  
  
  
He nodded, panting. “I got them alright.” He looked around, “Are there any more?”  
  
  
“According to Mercury these were the last two, I suggest that we go meet up with her to see what our next move should be.” Venus said seriously.  
  
  
I think I agree.” Tuxedo Mask shook his head as he got his breath back.  
  


* * *

  
  
Mercury looked up when Venus and Tuxedo Mask arrived. “Good, you’re done.”  
  
  
“It wasn’t too hard,” Venus wiped the sweat from her brow, which contradicted her words. “What do we do now?”  
  
  
“If I might make a suggestion,” Kizmel spoke up from where she stood in front of Asuna’s room, her Scimitar in one hand.  
  
  
“What is it, Kizmel?” Mercury asked calmly.  
  
  
“You three should go help at the other hospital.” Kizmel smiled slightly, “I should be able to handle anything else that might come up here.” She put a hand to her chest, “I’m not Asuna’s personal bodyguard for no reason after all.”  
  
  
Mercury looked thoughtful. “And you are sure that you’ll be able to handle anything that comes up should we leave?” The Elf hadn’t been out of Stasis long, would she be able to handle it?  
  
  
Kizmel shot her a look that showed how affronted she was by the insinuation. “I might not be a Senshi, but even a Youma dies if you stab it hard and often enough,” she said, carefully keeping how offensive she found that question out of her voice. “Now, we don’t know how many went to the other hospital, and they may need your assistance.”  
  
  
Mercury winced, she hadn’t meant to offend Kizmel with that question! Then the Senshi sighed, “If that is so, then that’s what we’ll do.” She turned to Venus and Tuxedo Mask. “Then we should get going.” She turned back to Kizmel. “Be careful, all right?”  
  
  
Kizmel nodded, “I will be returning to Asuna-sama’s room, in that case.”  
  


* * *

  
  
It took them five minutes to get to the other hospital. Five minutes too long, or that was how it felt to the three that were arriving. Mercury pressed a button on her headset, connecting her to both Mars and Jupiter. “The Princess’ Hospital has been cleared of all Youma so Venus, Tux and I are here to help.”  
  
  
Jupiter’s voice came over the speaker, “Thank goodness, you know Mars and I aren’t good for fighting indoors. Especially since Mars’ magic is fire based.”  
  
  
“Yes, we know, Jupiter.” Mercury replied. “Where are you?”  
  
  
“Ground floor, Security Office.” Jupiter answered promptly.  
  
  
Mercury opened her computer. “All right.” She turned to Venus and Tuxedo Mask, “You’d better get going.”  
  
  
“We’re on it.” Venus nodded to the reborn Earth Prince, “Come on Tux.”  
  
  
He nodded, following the leader of the Inner Senshi. The night was only half over.  
  


* * *

  
  
Senshi Mars stayed back, she wanted to see what the Captain’s magic looked like before she used her Ofuda to help him.  
  
  
Heathcliff almost silently spat the words for the Spell: Wind Needle, holding out a hand. The Youma began to turn, but was killed by the spell before it even turned around fully.  
  
  
“Your magic is quite potent.” Mars observed.  
  
  
“It is not quite as strong as yours,” Heathcliff replied.  
  
  
“Can you teach me some?” Mars asked hopefully. “I’d like to have some options that aren’t as destructive as my fire spells, and having something other than my Ofuda would be very helpful.” Not to mention the times when her Ofuda weren’t feasible…  
  
  
“This is Senshi Mercury, we’ve arrived.” a voice came over Mars’ headset.  
  
  
“Mercury, Captain Heathcliff and I are on the third floor,” she said. “We just finished a second Youma.”  
  
  
“Good.” Mercury said over the earpiece, “I’m detecting three more, two on the floor below you and one on the ground floor. I have Tux and Venus with me and I’m sending Venus to handle the Youma down here.”  
  
  
“We’ll see you in a bit then, Mars out.” Mars let her hand fall, “Shall we find the stairs?”  
  
  
“We’d better.” Captain Heathcliff agreed.  
  


* * *

  
  
Kyouko was so focused on what she could be doing instead of being here that she didn’t notice the ‘person’ come up behind her and her husband.  
  
  
“Give up your energy…” Kyouko turned when a hand landed heavily on her shoulder, but before she could turn completely, she began to feel very weak. She fell to her knees and then the floor.  
  
  
Next to her, Shouzou had also been attacked. They were both left weak on the floor and could barely hear the rapid footsteps of more than one person running towards them.  
  
  
She could see blurry figures above her.  
  


* * *

  
  
“Damn, it’s the Yuukis.” Heathcliff sighed as he knelt down between the two Youma victims. He looked to Mars, “Did you see where the Youma went?”  
  
  
Mars took a moment to scan the hallway with her eyes before calling Senshi Mercury. “Mercury, we have two victims in the hallway, can you find the Youma?”  
  
  
“On it Mars.” Mercury replied, and Mars could hear the quiet clacking in the background. “One is in the next hallway to your left.”  
  
  
“And the other?” Mars asked.  
  


* * *

  
  
Tilnel sipped at her coffee as she came out of the elevator. After so long asleep, she was finding it difficult to get back into the routine watches that she and her sister had set up to watch over the Princess and her companion. When she noticed the two doctors acting strangely, her fatigue disappeared.  
  
  
Her eyes narrowed, glowing slightly as she activated her Perception skill. An aura of darkness surrounded them completely, except for one point of bright yellow. “Energy?” She breathed, unknowingly retrieving her Saber from her Pocket.  
  
  
Activating her Hiding skill, Tilnel waited until the two Youma had passed her position and took them both by surprise, decapitating both.  
  
  
Tilnel’s eyes widened almost impossibly when both fell to dust. “Youma…” She grit her teeth angrily as she picked up the container of Energy. “I had better send word to the Captain.” she grimaced picking her coffee up from where it had fallen. “I’m going to have to replace the lid, but that’s all right.”  
  
  
She opened the Charm of Far Scribing and wrote a brief report, sending it to Heathcliff. That done, the younger of the two Dark Elves went to the Nutrition room and got a new lid for her coffee.  
  


* * *

  
  
Heathcliff opened the message from Tilnel. “That’s two more down; I think there is only one left.”  
  
  
Mars nodded. “What will you do after this?”  
  
  
“I have a central location where I can take a few hundred Players to keep them safe,” Heathcliff admitted. “But I wasn’t going to move anyone there unless something like this happened.”  
  
  
“Why?” Mars wanted to know.  
  
  
“Because I wouldn’t be able to do so for all the players in the g-” He stopped. “In the simulation. At most, I can move all the Players on the front lines, be they in supporting roles like blacksmiths or the Players that actively work to actually clear the floors, like Kirito and our Princess.”  
  
  
Mars nodded. “Where is this Hub of yours?”  
  
  
“I’d rather not say.” Heathcliff replied, his eyes narrowing, “At least, not here and not now. The walls have ears, Senshi Mars. And you and the rest of the Senshi know how important secrets are, especially on this scale.”  
  
  
Senshi Mars nodded. “In that case, I’ll drop it, for the moment.” She said, knowing when not to pry.  
  


* * *

  
  
Venus and Tuxedo Mask made it to the first of the LTC Ward’s floors. Venus connected to the network, “How many are left, Mercury?” she asked.  
  
  
“Just one on the fourth floor.” Mercury replied. “I have no idea what happened… Hang on a moment, I’m getting a message from Heathcliff.” There was a moment of silence, “Okay, according to the Captain, Tilnel took out the two that had been together.”  
  
  
“But wasn’t Tilnel a medic?” Venus asked in confusion. “I feel like I’m forgetting something big that has to do with those two…”  
  
  
“We can ask about that later, Venus, get moving.” Mercury ordered.  
  
  
“Right, Senshi Venus out.” Venus replied as she pulled her companion into the staircase. “Come on Tux, let’s earn our pay.” She sounded entirely too cheerful for the late hour.  
  
  
“I thought we weren’t getting paid to fight the Dark Kingdom…” the man grumbled as he followed.  
  


* * *

  
  
Tilnel appeared by Heathcliff’s side. “I have an Energy Canister, Captain,” she offered it.  
  
  
Heathcliff took it, breaking it between his hands and sighed in relief when the Yuuki’s pale skin regained color and they both sat up. “Are you both all right?” He asked.  
  
  
“Fine, thank you Heathcliff,” Shouzou replied. “What happened?”  
  
  
“Youma attacked the Hospital.” Heathcliff replied as he got up, extending his hands to help his colleague and the other man’s wife up.  
  
  
Shouzou took Heathcliff’s hand with a smile, but his wife simply glared up that the man.  
  
  
Heathcliff sighed. “Anyway, there is only one left and one of the others are getting it at the moment.” He grimaced, “that brings me to another topic, will you allow me to move your daughter to a more central and protected location?”  
  
  
“As if I would let you do such a thing, you madman!” Kyouko hissed as she got to her feet and brushed herself off.  
  
  
Shouzou sighed, “I’ll talk to you about this later.” he whispered into Heathcliff’s ear.  
  
  
Heathcliff gave him a nod, “All right, until later.” At least his Princess’s father was being reasonable.  
  


* * *

  
  
Venus and Tuxedo Mask left the stairwell on the fourth floor of the hospital. “Ok, we’re on the fourth floor, where is the monster?” Venus asked.  
  
  
“It should just be around the next corner on your left,” Mercury’s reply came over the headset. “I advise against using your whip or beam Venus.”  
  
  
“So, Guardian of the Princess it is, again.” Senshi Venus agreed, “No problem.”  
  
  
Tuxedo Mask sighed, “Shall I just stand back and let you handle it?”  
  
  
“I need you here if it survives my first attack.” Venus reminded him. “Even if your exploding roses aren’t the best thing for fighting indoors, they’re better than nothing.”  
  
  
“Hey, I can control what the explosion damages you know!” Tuxedo Mask shot back mockingly. It was an old joke between them all. And the fact that he used his exploding roses from the beginning had gained him a lot of giggles from the Senshi.  
  
  
That had continued up until he’d saved their lives with them halfway into the third year of this damned Shadow War they’d all been forced to wage against the Dark Kingdom. After that, it had turned into an in joke rather than mocking and he gave as good as he got.  
  
  
Tuxedo Mask took a step back and let Venus take the first attack, pulling out one of his roses for just in case.  
  
  
Venus pulled the Hand and a Half sword from the scabbard and started forward slowly. She wanted to take the Youma by surprise. Two quick strikes, and it was dead. “That should be all the Youma.” Venus sighed in relief.  
  
  
Tuxedo Mask nodded, “Then we should meet up with the others. Post haste.”  
  
  
They both turned and used the elevator, since the crisis was finally over. If either of them saw any more stairs tonight, it would be too soon.  
  


* * *

  
  
All the Senshi that had arrived converged on the Waiting Room that Heathcliff used to meet with the various people that he was working with. Mercury stretched as she sat down, sighing. “I’m tired.”  
  
  
“This night has been far too long,” Tuxedo Mask agreed from where he sat on a sofa. He covered his mouth as he yawned. He was visibly fighting the urge to lay down and sleep.  
  
  
Mars groaned, her eyes narrowing. “The Youma… Something feels off about them…”  
  
  
“They were too easily beaten.” Venus agreed from where she was leaning against the wall.  
  
  
“Easy for you to say,” Jupiter grumbled unhappily. “I understand why I can’t use my magic in doors, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.” She hated feeling like she hadn’t done anything to contribute to a fight. Which is how she was feeling right now.  
  
  
“We need to keep our good relations with the Government.” Mercury reminded her. “That means that we can’t damage these hospitals especially, because our Princess is in one of them and if one of these hospitals has to be shut down because of something we do, even on accident…” The blue haired girl sighed, “We could cripple who knows how many players as a result. And I don’t think any of us wants that.”  
  
  
“I guess the question we should be asking,” Venus looked up as Heathcliff re-entered the room, “Is what is going to happen now?”  
  
  
“I already have a plan in motion, Senshi Venus.” Heathcliff replied. “All of the Important Players, and their families are being moved to a central location. All the Players on the Top Most Floor and their support.”  
  
  
“Are we going too?” Mars asked.  
  
  
Heathcliff smirked, “I have asked for Mizuno Ami and Chiba Mamoru to be moved with the Players.”  
  
  
Mercury perked up, as did Tuxedo Mask.  
  
  
Heathcliff looked out the window, “In any case, the van assigned to Kirito and his family will be arriving soon, so I must be going.”  
  
  
Venus pushed away from the wall, “May I go with you?”  
  
  
“You are welcome too.” Heathcliff replied. “As for the rest of you, Pluto knows where the Hub is. It’s something that she can tell you about, now that they are being moved.”  
  


* * *

  
  
Cardinal took a deep breath as she activated the protocols that were in place in case of an emergency. Carefully, she teleported the Players on the long list she’d been given back into the [Safe Zones] and put each of them in [Sleep Mode].  
  
  
Then she sent a message to her Master’s phone telling him that it was now safe to move the Players. She took a moment to refresh every single Player’s HP and set them all to [Immortal Object] status as a precaution, since she had noticed that a few of the Orange Players were getting more and more bold about pushing the boundaries that Player ID: Kirito had set.  
  
  
She wasn’t happy that they were doing so. Perhaps she should take some kind of action to protect them from the Orange Players. But what should she do, if anything?  


* * *

  
  
Suguha got into the van with her mother after her older brother had been loaded up into it. She settled herself into one of the seats along the wall and watched as her older cousin and one of the Senshi followed. “Aki, what’s going on?”  
  
  
“The Hospital was attacked again.” Heathcliff replied as his cat jumped up onto Kazuto’s chest. “It’s not safe for some of the Players to be left here.” He slowly sank into the seat next to her.  
  
  
Suguha pouted. “Oh well, I suppose we’ll see Kou if he was with Asuna, this evening…”  
  
  
Heathcliff chuckled as Suguha leaned against him and started to fall asleep. He pet her hair fondly, glad that this bridge with his family was easily mended. Not that he expected Suguha to be happy with him once she was well rested. Not that he expected this bridge to be completely mended.  
  
  
“Why are you here if this is Kirito’s family?” Venus asked quietly after she was sure that both Midori and Suguha were asleep.  
  
  
“Because,” Heathcliff paused, “Kirito is not just my protégé…” He bit the inside of his lip. “He’s my little brother.”  
  
  
Venus smiled softly, “Your secret is safe with me, Captain.” she reassured him softly.  
  


* * *

  
  
They got to the Hub just before dawn the next morning. Heathcliff shook Midori awake and carried Suguha out of the van. Venus climbed out after the family was out and before Kirito was moved.  
  
  
Heathcliff followed as the doctors on site wheeled Kirito into a room with an already occupied bed.  
  
  
Midori’s eyes widened, “Aki, why is Asuna in this room?”  
  
  
“Because she and Kirito belong together.” Heathcliff replied, eying Kouichirou, who was sleeping on a sofa in the corner.  


 


	36. The End of a Quest and a Field Boss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quests and bosses, need I say more?
> 
> Oh, and there's more stuff going on outside.

Kirito slowly opened his eyes and raised his head. What the hell had happened? They were on top of their bed in their room in their Inn. Kirito looked down, his arm was wrapped tightly around Asuna’s middle and her virtual body was pressed tightly against his own.  
  
  
But wait, hadn’t they been out grinding? Then, why were they at home (for whatever definition of home was being used in this case)? He looked down again, and they were both clothed to be out and about. Being in bed at home made no sense what so ever.  
  
  
His arm tightened around Asuna as she began to shift around.  
  
  
“Kirito-kun?” she asked, her eyes opening only part way. “What just happened?” She rubbed at her eyes before giving up on waking completely.  
  
  
Kirito looked into her face and blushed. Turning his eyes away, he noticed the time in the corner of his vision. Really? But hadn’t they just had lunch? How could it be the next morning? “Asuna, what time was it last you checked?”  
  
  
“It was just after lunchtime, why?” She asked, blinking tiredly before hiding her face in his chest as she tried to go back to sleep.  
  
  
“Don’t you find it a little strange that we are home when last I checked, we were out looking for information that would help defeat the field boss?” Kirito mused.  
  
  
“Don’t care.” Asuna muttered, one of her arms snaking around his middle. “Going back to sleep.” She snuggled deeper into his side and fell silent, her breathing evening out again.  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, his cheeks going red as her chest pressed into his. Going back to sleep sounded like a wonderful idea really. They could figure out where their missing time went later. Taking a moment to change and put his equipment away, he put his head back down and fell back to sleep.  
  


* * *

  
  
A few hours later, Kirito woke up again. Why had he been so tired, and where had all that time gone? One minute it was just after lunch and the next, the next moment, it was dawn the next day.  
  
  
Shaking his head to clear it, he slowly extracted his arm from around his partner’s waist and stretched. “Asuna, time to get up, Asuna-hime.” He poked at her cheek.  
  
  
Asuna’s grip tightened around his middle. “No.” She replied in a half asleep, defiant tone.  
  
  
Kirito chuckled quietly, “Yes.” He poked her again.  
  
  
“Must we get up?” she asked, sitting up and rubbing one of her eyes tiredly. “I’m still tired.”  
  
  
“Asuna, listen to me.” Kirito said seriously, getting her full attention. “We are missing half a day and a night. And we don’t know why that happened.”  
  
  
“Wait, what?” Asuna asked, turning to look out the window. True to his word, it was now mid morning. “Why are we at home?”  
  
  
“That’s what I want to know.” Kirito agreed, also sitting up.  
  


* * *

  
  
They were back in the field, looking for information on the field boss again. “This field boss is going to be impossible.” Kirito muttered as he uncovered some of the information they’d need.  
  
  
“Don’t say that,” Asuna turned to him. “You were always telling me that we can’t stop. But, what will happen to our ability to climb the floors if you get discouraged?” She wanted to know.  
  
  
“I’m sorry, you’re right, Asuna-hime.” He gave her a weak smile. “I don’t know what I was thinking.” He probably wasn’t thinking at all…  
  
  
Checking to make sure that the area was clear, Asuna gave him a hug. “As you keep me going, I’ll motivate you, Kirito-kun.” She whispered.  
  
  
“Well, you don’t need to work very hard to do that.” Kirito gave her a smirk. “You do it just by being here.”  
  
  
Asuna blushed. “Dummy…” she mumbled, pushing away from him and turning away with a huff.  
  
  
Kirito chuckled. “And you are silly.” She wasn’t the only one blushing.  
  


* * *

  
  
Kouichirou stretched, yawning as he woke up. He was surprised to see Kayaba sitting on another sofa, with Suguha sleeping against him. “Ok, why are we all here?” Kouichirou asked.  
  
  
“Because there was an attack on both hospitals.” Kayaba replied quietly.  
  
  
“And why are Kirito and Asuna in the same room?” Kouichirou studied the boy.  
  
  
“Because they belong together.” Heathcliff smiled.  
  
  
Kouichirou opened the laptop and turned it on. “I can’t say I don’t agree.” He navigated to the Stream. “I’ve been watching them since I found the Stream. I’ve been letting Sugu watch too and our parents know as well.”  
  
  
Kayaba chuckled, looking from Kouichirou to his little sister. “I’m sure our parents would have liked her.” He mused, thinking back on what he remembered of his and Kazuto’s parents.  
  
  
Kouichirou blinked. “What?”  
  
  
“I am Kirito’s older brother.” Kayaba grinned. “And no, I didn’t know he was my brother when I decided that I would pass the torch to him.”  
  
  
“Not everyone is going to believe that.” Kouichirou told him pointedly.  
  
  
“Which is why we are going to do our best to keep it under wraps,” Kayaba shrugged, “To the point that if, no when it comes out, Kazu will have already proved that my choice wasn’t wrong. Even if some people accuse me of favoritism when it really wasn’t.”  
  
  
Kouichirou smiled, “Yuuki Kouichirou.” He introduced himself, “All my friends call me Kou.” He held his hand out to the older man.  
  
  
“Kayaba Akihiko,” Kayaba took the outstretched hand and gave it a firm shake. “My family and friends call me Aki.” He gave the laptop a curious look, “You forgot to turn off the stream?”  
  
  
“Well, my sister loved watching me play,” Kouichirou grinned. “Once the [Beta] ended though, I was just so busy it slipped my mind.”  
  


* * *

  
  
“Well, I don’t think we’ll find anything more about this stupid field boss.” Asuna muttered unhappily, kicking at a rock at her feet.  
  
  
“Yeah, you’re right.” Kirito sighed. “I suppose it’s time to finish the Adonis quest.” He stretched his arms over his head.  
  
  
“And deal with the creepy NPC of Beryl.” Asuna agreed. She didn’t like that thought. That NPC was creepy, and for more reasons than that she looked like their friend.  
  
  
“There’s a Beryl NPC?” Kirito asked in confusion, forgetting for a moment that he’d already known this.  
  
  
“Yeah. The only difference between this b- woman and our friend is that the NPC has red eyes and our Beryl-chan has blue-green eyes.” Asuna replied, “I really don’t want to deal with her any more often than I have too.” She gave him a look, “I thought I’d already told you about her.”  
  
  
He thought about it for a moment and then nodded. She was right; she had told him about the creepy NPC before. “Well, best get this over with.” Kirito agreed.  
  


* * *

  
  
[Lady Beryl of Atlantis] smiled maliciously when she noticed [Asuna the First] walking through the market. She didn’t know who the [servant] following along behind the girl was, but he wasn’t important. “Ah, [Lady Asuna the First],” she purred, “Have you finally decided to take me up on my offer?”  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes narrowed as she gazed at the NPC. “I told you that I might, should my partner be with me.”  
  
  
“I see.” Beryl’s smile made Asuna very nervous. “Well, in that case… follow me.”  
  


* * *

  
  
Kirito watched as the NPC left them at the mouth of a dark cave. He turned to Asuna, “You are right, she is really creepy.”  
  
  
“That doesn’t make me feel any better.” Asuna muttered, crossing her arms. She sent a glare after the NPC before turning back to the mouth of the cave. “We should get this over with.”  
  
  
“Alright, that’s what we’ll do.” Kirito held an arm out, “Shall we?”  
  
  
She chuckled. “Why not?” Asuna stepped closer to her partner and followed him inside.  
  
  
The cave was full of Youma. But, since Kirito and Asuna had both fought a Youma and had been hit. Asuna was amazed at the whirlwind that Kirito had become. Their kill counts varied quite a lot. Everything about the way he moved and fought was a sight of… she wasn’t sure. But Asuna couldn’t deny that she stopped to stare.  
  
  
“I’m glad we didn’t make a competition of how many we could kill.” Asuna spoke up once Kirito had finished clearing the area.  
  
  
Kirito blushed. “Asuna…” He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. “I… It’s not…”  
  
  
“You are and always have been amazing.” Asuna cut him off with a fond smile.  
  
  
Kirito looked away, suddenly feeling very shy. “I’m not that special, Asuna…” He sheathed his sword.  
  
  
“Yes you are. Because you will always be my friend.” Her hope that their friendship would turn into something much deeper was left unsaid. Asuna cupped his cheeks in her hands. “I will always think that you are amazing, no matter what you do.”  
  
  
“If you say so.” Kirito agreed, giving up on arguing with her. It wasn’t worth it, and she always won anyway.  
  
  
“I do say so.” Asuna poked his nose teasingly.  
  
  
“Ok.” He took her hand and led her further into the cave.  
  


* * *

  
  
Kirito panted as he came down from the high that fighting for his life always gave him. “I wasn’t expecting to have to actually fight Adonis.” He muttered as a window opened in front of him, showing what he’d gotten from the fight. “Asuna, what did you do with the sword you got from the Venus NPC?” He groaned as his [Quest Log] updated.  
  
  
“I gave it to Lux, because it was the wrong kind of sword for me. It was one of the swords you and Lux like to use.” Asuna replied from a few feet away. “That fight wasn’t fun.”  
  
  
“No, it really wasn’t any fun.” Kirito turned to his partner and noticed that her HP was bordering on the red. He pulled out a potion and handed it to her. “You’re almost in the red; I think you might need this.” That fight had felt almost like a Boss Fight!  
  
  
She took the potion, “You aren’t much better off.”  
  
  
Kirito gave her a flat look, “I have more HP than you at the moment, just drink the potion already.”  
  
  
Asuna frowned, almost pouting. “Aren’t you going to take one out for yourself?”  
  
  
“I can still take a hit if I have to, you can’t.” Kirito retorted. “Drink that potion, [Princess].” He commanded almost gently.  
  
  
That unwelcome tingling shot down her spine, “Yes, [Commander].” She replied sullenly, opening the bottle and drinking it down.  
  
  
Kirito sighed, “I’m sorry, Asuna-hime. I didn’t know I could do that…” How had that happened?  
  
  
Asuna shrugged, “Do you think you can figure out how to do that on purpose? It would be so useful against Kibaou.” She giggled.  
  
  
“Once I have that figured out, I’ll help you with yours.” Kirito agreed.  
  
  
Asuna sighed as her HP finished recovering. Then she pulled a potion out and handed it over to Kirito.  
  
  
Kirito took the potion, “There’s going to be a point where these won’t be so useful anymore.”  
  


* * *

  
  
Argo was waiting for them when Kirito and Asuna got back to the Nameless Inn. “You really need to name this place, Kii-bou, A-chan.” She smirked.  
  
  
Kirito rolled his eyes, “Argo…” He warned.  
  
  
“I have a suggestion…” Argo’s grin grew larger, ignoring the warning tone that her younger friend had in his voice.  
  
  
“I’m not sure I want to know,” Asuna muttered as she put her armor back in her inventory. “But you are likely to tell us anyway aren’t you?” She asked, her eyes narrowing.  
  
  
“I’d call it [The White Moon’s Black Sun].” Argo continued, as if Asuna hadn’t said anything.  
  
  
Kirito and Asuna both sent their friend an unimpressed look. Then they shared a look and a defeated sigh.  
  
  
“Really Argo?” Asuna sighed tiredly.  
  
  
“I swear, some days she’s impossible.” Kirito grumbled. He turned to his partner, “So, dinner first or shall we go find a place to nap?”  
  
  
“I think that depends.” Asuna hid her face with a hand.  
  
  
“On what?” Kirito asked, putting a hand on the small of her back.  
  
  
“On if we want to put off dealing with Argo or not.” Asuna turned to look up at him. “What do you think?”  
  
  
“I think it depends on why she’s here.” Kirito replied, turning curious eyes on the other [Beta Tester]. “Well?”  
  
  
Argo sighed. “I’m here on official business, [Commander].” She admitted sadly. She hated being all official, especially when it meant that she could not tease her friends.  
  
  
Kirito winced. “Asuna, go put dinner on, I have to deal with this.” He pushed her gently towards the counter.  
  
  
Asuna blinked, “Alright, I’ll be in the kitchen.” She agreed slipping behind the front counter where guests would check in and opened a door to the back. She left it open as she slid inside.  
  
  
Kirito crossed his arms. “What do you have to report, [Spymaster]?” He asked, all business, wanting to get this over with as soon as he could.  
  
  
Argo took a deep breath. “I think I found something that has to do with the Field Boss that we’ve been struggling with.”  
  
  
“Go on.” Kirito gestured to one of the chairs near the open door to the kitchen. “What have you found?”  
  
  
“There was indeed something that didn’t make it into the game.” Argo brought up her menu and toggled it to visible. She sent him something in a trade window, which he accepted.  
  
  
Kirito opened the window and read it silently for a moment. “A [Flight Mechanic]?” He asked, sounding just slightly confused.  
  
  
Argo nodded, “Supposedly, the Flight Mechanic was supposed to be in both ALfheim Online and SAO. And no, I don’t know how you’re supposed to pronounce that first name.” She shook her head.  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes narrowed. “I wonder why it wasn’t included…”  
  
  
“Perhaps it had something to do with not wanting to push back the release date?” Argo asked. “We could always ask the [Game Master], [Commander].”  
  
  
“I suppose we should do that.” Kirito agreed. “It would have been fun, to be able to fly.” He mused, his voice sounding wistful.  
  


* * *

  
  
Asuna frowned as she looked at what she had to work with. “I suppose I should just make something simple for dinner.” She grumbled, keeping half an ear on what her partner and Argo were speaking of. Something simple, but she could think of a lot of simple things that she could do with what she had in front of her. Asuna sighed, “I’d better ask if Kirito-kun has any ideas.”  
  
  
She hesitated, and then looked back at the ingredients. “Hm… No, I don’t think I need any input actually…” she started rolling up her sleeves, an idea forming in her head. She pulled out her knife and got to work.  
  


* * *

  
  
Godfree sighed as he got back into the town he was staying in. “I’m tired, but today was a good day.” He stretched as he slowly made his way to the Inn where he was staying.  
  
  
“Excuse me.” A voice said from behind him.  
  
  
Godfree blinked, turning around. “Yes? Can I help you?” he asked the steel grey haired player.  
  
  
The man smiled, “I am Heathcliff, I want to put a Clearing Guild together. Would you please consider joining?” The man’s charismatic smile never wavered. “Feel free to take as long as you would like to think about it.”  
  
  
“I was thinking about finding a guild to join actually.” Godfree admitted. “But tell me, why should I join yours when you haven’t even formed the Guild yet.”  
  
  
“If you would allow me to accompany you to the Inn you are staying in so that I may explain?” Heathcliff asked.  
  
  
Godfree nodded.  
  


* * *

  
  
Cardinal smiled as she reset all the Players back into [Mortal Objects]. Now, what should she do about that Field Boss? She wasn’t exactly sure that she needed to do anything about it. The Players would be able to figure something out eventually. Part of her wondered how many players would die as they slowly figured out how to overcome the problem.  
  
  
She knew without a doubt that they would figure out a different way to beat the boss, given enough time.  
  
  
Would they need hints? Would she even need to give any out? A piece of coding caught Cardinal’s eye. “Is this the program that works the default [Flight Engine]?” she asked out loud, bringing up a new window with what she’d just found.  
  
  
Poking at the code, the AI started to figure out what the program was for, putting aside the nearly completely debugged [Dual Blades] to one side for the moment.  
  


* * *

  
  
Luna looked up from what she was doing when she heard her two friends getting closer. “Hey, Silica, Yuuna, what’s up?”  
  
  
Yuuna smiled, “Hi, Luna, we got something off the Youma we were hunting.”  
  
  
Silica nodded, opening her menu. “It’s Youma Dust.” She pulled one of the bags out of her inventory. “It doesn’t say anything about what it can do, so we were wondering if it was a [Crafting Material] or not.”  
  
  
Luna picked the bag up and tapped the icon to take a look. “Huh, it looks like this stuff can be used to make weapons more effective against the Youma.” She frowned, “I wonder if this would also work IRL…” She shook her head. “Anyway, girls, I can’t do anything with it because I don’t make weapons. But I think I know who to send you to, if you want to use the [Youma Dust]?”  
  
  
Silica and Yuuna nodded.  
  


* * *

  
  
Heathcliff sighed as he got back to his own inn room on the thirteenth floor. He thought he’d done well in pitching his idea to Godfree. Now, who else did he have to speak with about this?  
  
  
He looked down at his list of names he still needed to sift through. This could take a while. Well, if he was going to create a Guild, he might as well do it right.  
  


* * *

  
  
Griselda sighed in relief as they all got back to the [Safe Zone], “So, how about we form a guild?” she asked, turning to the rest of her party, a [Golden Apple] in one hand.  
  
  
“Well, what should we call this guild?” her husband, Grimlock asked curiously.  
  
  
Yoruko looked thoughtful, “I think we should call ourselves something significant.”  
  
  
“Something that will be meaningful to us?” Caynz asked.  
  
  
Yoruko nodded. “Exactly.”  
  
  
Ran and Merida traded a look as they all entered one of the Inn rooms they were sharing. “Perhaps it should be something we all share, something we have in common?” Merida asked.  
  
  
“What about the weapons we use?” Ran suggested.  
  
  
Schmitt shook his head, “That’s not a very good idea, unless we want to call ourselves Blades. We all use something different.”  
  
  
“You’re right, I didn’t think about it like that,” Ran frowned.  
  
  
“I think I might have a suggestion,” The last member of the party spoke up, pulling her hood back, revealing clear golden brown eyes and auburn, almost red hair.  
  
  
“What is that, Rain?” Ran asked.  
  
  
Rain grinned as she raised a hand and pointed to what Griselda was holding. “We were all looking for that item, so why don’t we call ourselves after what brought us together?” her smile was radiant, “Let’s call ourselves: [The Golden Apple].”  
  


* * *

  
  
Sugou smirked as he turned on his computer. His office door was locked and he’d cancelled all of his appointments for the day. Perhaps now he’d be able to see what he could do about playing with Sword Art Online’s code. He wasn’t planning to break the Players out, but if that was a side effect of his efforts to learn more about the complex code then that was that.  
  
  
His computer was kind of on the old side, but the booting was fairly quick compared to what most people would expect due to him using a version of Linux he had custom designed himself. No wasted processes, and it wasn’t as if he needed to use a GUI to do what he wanted with it. He used it for hacking, and despite the obsolescence of its components, all the work he put into optimizing every part of it, from the components to the operating system made it very well suited for that purpose.  
  
  
Sugou turned to look at the picture on his desk. It was a teen in a school uniform with inquisitive amber eyes and long chestnut hair and her mouth was stretched into a small smile. “Soon, you will be mine… Asuna…”

 


	37. Sick AIs and Danger to the Players

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cardinal is hacked, which is bad news for everyone involved.

Cardinal felt her knees suddenly go weak and spots of white and black bloomed across her vision. “What…?” She asked breathlessly as she tried to support herself on the console in front of her. “Master… Help…” she breathed, barely managing to press the [Emergency Lockdown] button as she slid sideways, landing with a heavy crash to the floor. Something was wrong!  
  
  
  
Cardinal had no idea what was going on, she felt both hot and cold, her elegant avatar started glitching and going staticky, much as she had seen Yui’s and later Strea’s do. She felt several critical systems slip from her grasp.  
  
  
  
Cardinal was just glad that she’d been able to activate the [Lockdown], now; none of the Players could die. A killing blow, _any_ killing blow would result in the Player’s HP going to One and staying there. It wasn’t fair if she wasn’t in control and it was her job to protect them, even if she wasn’t in any condition to do so.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba’s eyes widened when he pulled out his phone and read through the message. He hissed in concern as he finished, getting up. “I need to get going. Something is wrong.”  
  
  
  
“Will the Players be alright?” Midori asked in concern, her eyes going to the two patients that they were all visiting.  
  
  
  
Kayaba almost faltered when the eyes of everyone in the room turned to him. “First, let me ask this: What do you think Cardinal is?”  
  
  
  
“The Cardinal System is what runs SAO, right?” Suguha asked, having looked through some of the articles that her brother had on the topic.  
  
  
  
“You’re right,” Kayaba hedged, “But not completely. You see, Cardinal is not a System. Cardinal is an AI. The AI charged with protecting the Players as they fight their way through [Sword Art Online].”  
  
  
  
“Cardinal is an _AI_?” Kouichirou breathed in amazement. “But I thought we were _years_ away from achieving that.”  
  
  
  
Kayaba smiled sadly. “Normally, you’d be right.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito pulled Asuna close as Aincrad itself seemed to rumble and shake to the very foundations. The Field Boss had just been beaten. But, something about the commotion didn’t feel right. “I think we all need to get back to the closest [Safe Zone] we can find.” There was a second harsher, sharper, harder, rumble and shaking, sending everyone to the ground.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The shaking wasn’t just happening on the thirteenth floor, it was happening on every single floor. The only reason that the buildings in the cities and villages on every floor were still in one piece was because they were all [Immortal Objects].  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
On the second floor, Yuuna, Silica and Luna clung to each other as the chairs started falling on their sides. “What is this?” Yuuna asked; panic welling up in her chest.  
  
  
  
“I don’t know,” Silica shivered, snuggling closer to Luna.  
  
  
  
“I think we should be glad that the buildings can’t fall to pieces.” Luna spoke over the loud sounds of shaking glasses and plates. She pulled her friends closer.  
  
  
  
Yuuna couldn’t agree more. Her older friend had a good point. But that didn’t make the shaking any less terrifying.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba entered the room he’d set up for himself in the Hub and went to the bed. It was time to get back to work. He was going to kill whoever thought that this was a good idea!  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba hurried into the [Game Master] area under the first floor. “Cardinal!” he called. He bit back a curse when he rounded the workstations and found his assistant’s avatar glitching. What could have done this to her?  
  
  
  
Kayaba was hesitant to even touch her, but he had to figure out what was wrong. “Cardinal, can you hear me?” He asked gently in concern.  
  
  
  
Cardinal blinked, sneezing as she glitched again, “Master?”  
  
  
  
“I’m here, what happened?” He lay a gentle, hesitant hand on her shoulder, and when he wasn’t infected by whatever it was that had affected her; he pulled her up so that the AI was leaning against Kayaba’s side.  
  
  
  
“I… dunno…” her voice slurred as she tried to pull herself together enough to run a diagnostic on her program. “It… hurts…”  
  
  
  
Kayaba turned to the terminal and got an idea, “Hang on Cardinal, I think I have an idea.”  
  
  
  
Cardinal nodded silently. She was in too much pain to actually do much else. She closed her eyes tightly and did her best not to move.  
  
  
  
Kayaba’s eyes narrowed when he accessed Cardinal’s code. There was something very wrong with what he was looking at. It would take a while to figure out. But he was sure it wouldn’t take too long, he knew this code intimately after all. The code for Cardinal had come first, before he’d even thought of writing SAO’s or ALfheim’s codes.  
  
  
  
It took him five minutes to find the problem: SAO, and thus Cardinal, had been hacked. But who could be stupid enough to… Kayaba shook his head. “Think about that later.” He told himself. Who had hacked his simulation and baby AI could be figured out later, even if he suspected that he already knew who it was.  
  
  
  
Right now, he had to focus on fixing Cardinal. Justice could wait. As much as he hated it, fixing Cardinal would take time away from playing the game and spending time with his brother. But if he didn’t fix Cardinal as soon as he could, the game would eventually crash, and Kayaba didn’t want to think about how many people could likely lose their lives as they were booted from the simulation.  
  
  
  
At the same time, he needed to be out in the simulation, protecting the rest of the Players. But he couldn’t be in two places at once! Unless… Kayaba turned to look at the third, locked [Game Master] terminal.  
  
  
  
“Kazu…” He breathed, beginning to grin. He’d been looking for a way to give Kirito the Game Master account since he’d found out that the boy was his younger brother. Kazu had his computer talents; the boy would be able to fix problems as he came across them.  
  
  
  
Kayaba stepped away from his terminal and opened his menu. He opened a PM window and wrote a short message before sending it. Hopefully, Kirito wouldn’t overreact to the news…  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito opened his eyes and looked down at the icon. Who could be messaging him _now_?  
  
  
  
“Are you going to answer that or not?” Asuna asked from where she was partially hidden underneath him.  
  
  
  
“I think I should.” Kirito muttered, tapping the icon with a finger of the hand that wasn’t attached to the arm that was holding his partner tightly.  
  
  
  
**_Subject_** _: Danger to the Players_  
  
  
  
_To: Kirito_  
  
  
  
_From: Heathcliff_  
  
  
  
_Commander,_  
  
  
  
_I am in need of your assistance; meet me down on the first floor by the [Black Iron Palace]. You are free to bring our [Princess] with you but please, do not bring anyone else with you._  
  
  
  
_SAO’s integrity has been threatened. The game, and my Assistant Cardinal have been hacked into. Originally, only Cardinal and I were supposed to be the Game Masters, but circumstances have forced me to consider otherwise._  
  
  
  
_You and our [Princess] are the only ones who can know, and telling you in a message such as this is not secure enough for my tastes._  
  
  
  
_Please meet with me as soon as you are able._  
  
  
  
_Your Brother,_  
  
  
  
_Aki_  
  
  
  
Kirito bit his lip as he thought about what they needed to do. They couldn’t leave the inn right now. Not with the shaking as if the entire place was caught in an earthquake, not to mention he could hear the sounds of panicking players.  
  
  
  
Just who in their right mind would be trying to hack into SAO when his brother had most likely made it clear that doing so would pose more of a danger to the players than not doing so. He _had_ read up on SAO’s security and knew how secure it should be. So why would someone be trying now?  
  
  
  
“Aki wants to meet us for something on the first floor, but I don’t like the idea of going out in this.” Kirito grit his teeth. “But whatever it is, he says it’s urgent. And he doesn’t want us to bring anyone else to meet him.”  
  
  
  
Asuna’s grip on his armor tightened as the shaking intensified. “If we want to get there quickly then we should perhaps use our [Teleport Crystals]? Because I don’t think this is going to stop any time soon…”  
  
  
  
“I think you’re right.” Kirito agreed, reaching for one of the mentioned [Teleport Crystals].  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The world was still quaking and shaking when they arrived in the central square of the [Town of Beginnings] where the [Teleport Pad] stood in the center of the [Plaza].  
  
  
  
Kirito’s arm was still wrapped tightly around his partner’s middle, but that didn’t stop them from almost falling over. “Let’s go!” He began to pull his partner through the panicking crowd. It took some doing, the crowds and the shaking ground slowed them down, but they did eventually make their way to the [Black Iron Palace]. There were still a lot of people around. “Brother, where are you?” Kirito wondered.  
  
  
  
A red armor clad hand pulled them both inside. “You made it, good.” Heathcliff sounded relieved.  
  
  
  
Kirito turned, “Aki,” he breathed, barely able to keep himself and Asuna standing. “What’s going on?”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff led them to a door, “This way, after we leave the game proper, the shaking should stop, for us at least.” He pulled the door open and pushed the two young players through the doorway, following them a moment later and closing the door behind him.  
  
  
  
Where they were now, the hallways, walls, ceiling and floor, were all a bright white. “Where are we going, Aki?” Kirito asked, his grip on Asuna loosening as soon as he was sure he’d gotten his balance back.  
  
  
  
“Welcome, to the domain of the Game Master.” Heathcliff sighed, “Follow me.”  
  
  
  
Kirito blinked for a moment, before obeying his older brother. They were headed, down? “We’re underneath the [Town of Beginnings]?”  
  
  
  
“We are,” Heathcliff confirmed. “Originally, there was supposed to be a second Game Master, but that second account is locked, because I didn’t find the one it was made for before the game began.” He didn’t stop, “Unfortunately, with how my Assistant has been hacked, I’m needed down here to fix her. But at the same time, I’m needed in the game, to make sure that no player loses their lives because of the hacker.”  
  
  
  
“But, you can’t be in two places at the same time!” Asuna realized in horror.  
  
  
  
“In all honesty,” Heathcliff smiled. “I’d been looking for a way to give the account to the person it belongs to fairly.”  
  
  
  
“Who was it for?” Kirito asked curiously.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff just smiled as he led them down the endless corridor. “You’ll see when we get there.”  
  
  
  
It didn’t take as long as either Kirito or Asuna thought it would. The room they walked into had three workstations on three different consoles and wasn’t very large. There were holographic screens covering every wall, showing error messages.  
  
  
  
“ _Damn it_.” Heathcliff cursed. “It’s gotten worse and I wasn’t even gone for five minutes. Cardinal, are you all right?” He called.  
  
  
  
“No,” the young AI called back weakly.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff went to her and picked her up. Reaching over to his workstation, he tapped a sequence of keys and a bed appeared in one corner, which he laid Cardinal down on.  
  
  
  
Kirito leaned against Cardinal’s terminal, “I still can’t believe that someone was stupid enough to hack SAO. What the hell were they thinking?” He shook his head. “So, the second account, Aki, who’s it for?”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff turned to look at his brother. “It’s for you, it always was.”  
  
  
  
“Me?” Kirito blinked, “But…” Why would his brother do something so stupid?  
  
  
  
Heathcliff sighed. “I know that it is not fair to give this to you when I took the right away from the professionals. But you’ve already changed greatly since the [Beta].” He smiled fondly. “You think of the other players first. You want to protect them as much as I do, as much as Cardinal does.” He rubbed his face, “This will allow you to do a much better job of it.”  
  
  
  
Kirito walked up to the third terminal, “It’s locked.”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff huffed, “Of course it is. I wasn’t about to let anyone access it but you.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded. “I understand that,” he said. “But you will have to explain why you saved it for _me_ at some point.” When Heathcliff was about to respond, he shook his head; “Not _now,_ of course. You, no _we_ , have to stabilize things first.” The [Immortal Object] status of the [Safe Zones] might fail if they didn’t do anything.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff nodded. “I’m glad you understand that,” he said as he began to type in some commands. “All right, it’s unlocked.”  
  
  
  
Kirito looked at the terminal he was going to use and then at Asuna. She nodded at him. He went over and took a seat. “So Aki, what do I have to do?”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna watched in amazement as her partner’s fingers danced skillfully over the keys as he watched the code in front of him fly on and off the screen. “Find anything yet?”  
  
  
  
“It’s a worm.” Kirito replied, pausing for a moment as the thought about how to fix what was in front of him. “I think I can make the shaking stop…”  
  
  
  
“That should be enough for the moment.” Heathcliff sighed in relief. “The other Players should calm down once that’s done.”  
  
  
  
“Will you make an announcement?” Asuna asked, turning to the older man.  
  
  
  
“I will have to.” Heathcliff agreed. “I’m not sure what I will say yet, but everyone else needs to know about the hacker.”  
  
  
  
“Just tell them up front that someone tried to hack SAO and the means used,” Kirito said, not looking up from his Troubleshooting. “Do you have any idea who it was?”  
  
  
  
“I do, but I refuse to speculate.” Heathcliff replied with a snarl.  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded in understanding. “I think I’m finished.” He slowly pulled his hands away from the keyboard. “But I suppose we’ll only find out by asking another player, or going outside ourselves.” He then shrugged, turning to his brother. “I suppose now that I’m logged in as an admin my menu will look different?”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff nodded. “You can make it look like your normal menu. I will show you how to do that shortly.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded grimly. He didn’t really like the thought of being an Admin. Not just because he doubted he was qualified for it, but also the potential ramifications if it got found out. Neither he, nor his brother had anything to do with this being a [Death Game]. His brother had had no choice but to claim credit, at least in the game, but that didn’t stop the fact that you die when you are killed in SAO.  
  
  
  
He gave his brother a glance and wondered how true that was, though. Was it true that they actually died, or was it simply that it meant that dying in game had a far higher chance of killing the unfortunate player who did die? He would ask, but not now, as it didn’t change the reality of their current situation.  
  
  
  
They were trapped in here, with a very real possibility of dying as far as any of them knew. Who was to blame didn’t matter in that light. It was a simple fact of life for them all.  
  
  
  
Finally, when Cardinal’s avatar had stopped glitching and she was resting peacefully, Heathcliff approached Kirito. “Open your menu.” He ordered.  
  
  
  
Kirito complied; he hadn’t changed the settings back to private yet, so he didn’t need to worry about making it visible.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff nodded as he looked over Kirito’s shoulder. “If you’ll check your settings you’ll see that there are a few more options than you had when you were just a Player.”  
  
  
  
“I see them,” Kirito replied, browsing through his new menu so that he’d have some idea of where everything was. He froze for a moment, remembering something. “Brother, I only want to share my menu with Asuna, how can I do that?” Was it possible?  
  
  
  
Heathcliff shook his head, “There is no way to simply share your menu with one person.” He sighed, “I wish I’d thought of doing it that way before the game had started though. Why?”  
  
  
  
Kirito hesitated for a single moment before he pulled up the window with the code he’d been working on. “This is something I’ve been playing with in my downtime, when I’ve had enough of everything in the game and want to do something else.” He shrugged, “It’s not finished, and it was just something to do to keep myself from getting bored. When I was confident that it might work, I intended to show it to you anyway to check.”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff studied the piece of code for a moment. “Well, even if we wanted to implement it, we can’t just yet because Cardinal and the game needs to be fixed. But in the meantime, you should keep working on it.” He patted his brother’s shoulder.  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, “All right.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Once he’d made his menu look like a normal Player’s Kirito and Asuna left the Game Master’s Domain. “Well, the shaking has stopped.” Kirito breathed, “Now how long until Aki makes the announcement is up for debate.”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded. “I’m glad you were able to stop the shaking.”  
  
  
  
“I’m not qualified for this…” Kirito breathed. Why had his brother wanted him to be an Admin? He wasn’t even finished with school…  
  
  
  
“Kirito-kun, you told me about Trojans, what’s the difference between that and a worm?” Asuna wanted to know, putting a hand on his shoulder.  
  
  
  
“Worms, Trojans, and Viruses are all very damaging to a computer, system, or a network.” Kirito looked back at the [Black Iron Palace]. “And, it looks like we can add AIs to the list.” He returned his gaze to Asuna, “Worms and viruses like Trojans can and will infect a network. All of them are called Malware. Are you following me so far?”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded, looking quite interested.  
  
  
  
“Well,” Kirito continued, “While you have to hunt for a Trojan, due to it being disguised as a normal piece of code or program, a worm is not. If you can read and write code and you know enough about how the system works at the code level, then you can, potentially, write a worm, any malware really, as you would a normal program for a computer. You need to know what you’re doing, or at least hope the person or people writing it know what they’re doing. On the other hand, if you know what a worm looks like, you can isolate it to keep it from spreading and then erase it. That’s what Anti-Malware software does.” He finished explaining.  
  
  
  
“I see,” Asuna replied, glad that he’d done his best not to go into details which she wasn’t likely to understand. “Thank you for keeping it as general as possible.”


	38. The Biting Chill of War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mars is cold, and not much fun.

It took a day or so for his brother to make the announcement, but Kirito was glad that it hadn’t taken longer than that. With his new power as an admin of Sword Art Online, Kirito had decided to take a few days away from the front lines up on floor thirteen to make sure that the other floors weren’t buggy themselves.  
  
  
  
“What are the chances of one of the floors above thirteen being buggy?” Asuna asked from where she was tending their campfire, not minding that Kirito had his head buried in his menu.  
  
  
  
“I’d say the chances are quite high.” Kirito replied, not looking up. He was working hard to fix the errors in the [Anneal Blade] quest. Just walking through the forest and Harunka Village had sent shivers down their spines. The whole area was buggy. “The worm hit the code, so logically what was affected down here would have effects outside of the places and quests we’ve already seen.”  
  
  
  
“Does that mean we’ll have to go through the Campaign quest again?” Asuna asked in concern. “And what about Kizmel?”  
  
  
  
Kirito shook his head as he made the final touches for fixing the area. “No, we won’t, my senses are good enough that we only need to be near an area for me to know if it needs fixing or not.”  
  
  
  
“Well, that’s good.” Asuna smiled, “We’ll probably need to get back to the front lines soon, if only to make sure that the Labyrinth and boss aren’t buggy too.”  
  
  
  
“Alright, we can return to the Front when I’m done fixing this floor.” Kirito agreed, closing his menu as Asuna finished cooking their dinner. “I think I’m done with this area, so we can move on in the morning.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
From there, it only took half a day to find and fix the rest of the errors on the first floor. By lunch time, they’d returned to the thirteenth floor. None of the Clearers were panicking anymore, but it looked like they were getting ready to scout out the boss room.  
  
  
  
Lind and Kibaou were, once again, arguing over who should do the scouting. And with how the DKB and ALS were milling around, chatting, they’d been arguing for a while.  
  
  
  
Kirito and Asuna approached Shivata, “Have they been arguing long?” Kirito asked tiredly.  
  
  
  
“For the last hour,” Shivata confirmed with a sigh.  
  
  
  
“Do I have to knock their heads together again?” Kirito muttered angrily, shaking his head in disgust. He turned to make his way to where the two guild leaders were squabbling.  
  
  
  
The two guilds parted as Kirito passed them all with Asuna a step behind him. “Need I remind the two of you what happened the _last_ time I needed to put the two of you in time out?” Kirito asked dully, his voice just loud enough to carry over the ongoing argument.  
  
  
  
Lind stepped back and shut up, regaining the demeanor that he usually carried himself with.  
  
  
  
Kibaou turned, growling audibly at Kirito, “Keep out of this, [Beater]!” He snarled.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s expression went flat. It was one that the other, regular members of the Raids were starting to recognize.  
  
  
  
“Go sit in the damned corner.” Kirito replied, pointing to a chair that had been specifically set up there. Glad that the meeting was taking place in the Inn that he and Asuna now somehow owned. “Or, you’ll be thrown out. Now, go cool off.”  
  
  
  
There must have been some kind of effect in Kirito’s voice, because a few minutes later, Kibaou was sitting in the chair, pouting.  
  
  
  
Kirito turned to everyone else. “Now then, what is this meeting supposed to be about?”  
  
  
  
“We were trying to set up a team to scout the Boss.” Lind shrugged.  
  
  
  
“I see.” Kirito’s eyes narrowed, “You did hear Kayaba’s announcement, right? About the hacking?”  
  
  
  
Lind nodded, “We all heard, not sure how many of us believe it though.”  
  
  
  
Kirito crossed his arms over his chest, “How many of you here have developed an awareness of the System?”  
  
  
  
Agil took a step forward, “I know I have.” He paused, “There are some places in the Labyrinth that feel…”  
  
  
  
“Off? Disgusting?” Kirito asked.  
  
  
  
Agil nodded, “Yes to both. It’s not most of the dungeon, but I start getting that feeling around the Boss Room.”  
  
  
  
“Let Asuna-hime and I handle it then, I do not think we should go anywhere near the boss if its data’s been damaged by the hacking attempt.” Kirito responded.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Two days later, after Kirito fixed the problems he found, they fought the boss of the thirteenth floor and won.  
  
  
  
With trepidation, Kirito and Asuna climbed the staircase to the fourteenth floor. It took both of them to push the doors open. “Oh, gods it’s _cold_!” Asuna squeaked, rubbing at her uncovered arms.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s eyes widened as he watched his own breath coalesce in front of his face before the rust red color of the landscape caught his attention. “Well, we’re on Mars.” His arms shook as he pulled Asuna close to share body heat. “That explains why it’s so cold quite nicely I’d say.”  
  
  
  
“I say we need to find the main settlement as soon as possible.” Asuna hid her her face in his shoulder. “We should get inside, and then I’ll try my hand at making something warmer than the standard cloaks that we’ve got now.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded in agreement as he pulled his scarf out of his inventory and wrapped it around his neck. “My scarf helps some, but I don’t think our cloaks are heavy enough for the floor.”  
  
  
  
Together they began walking forward, hoping that they’d be able to keep warm if they kept on the move.  
  
  
  
“And to think, the next several floors are only going to get colder…” Asuna muttered as she leaned heavily into her partner’s side as they crested the third hill and the main settlement: [Udātta Hōrāṭagāra] came into view. “How about, before we open the floor we see if there isn’t a way to warm the floor up?”  
  
  
  
“That, is a marvelous idea.” Kirito’s grip tightened. “Let’s get a room before we do anything else and warm up?”  
  
  
  
Asuna nodded as they got into town.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Luna looked around before looking back down at the message that [The Rat] had sent her. She smiled when she saw the now pink haired girl working in the stall with several boys. “Are you Lisbeth?” she asked as Yuuna and Silica came up behind her.  
  
  
  
Liz looked up, “That’s me, you may call me Liz.” She looked at the three curiously. “You are?”  
  
  
  
“I’m Luna,” the tall blonde raised a hand. “This is Silica, and the girl with white hair is Yuuna.” Her two companions waved. “We heard that you’re the best when it comes to creating and repairing weapons.”  
  
  
  
Liz puffed her chest out. “That’s me. What can I do for you?”  
  
  
  
“Well, the three of us need our gear repaired.” Luna replied with a shrug.  
  
  
  
“Who wants to go first then?” Liz asked, twirling her hammer in her right hand.  
  
  
  
“I will,” said Silica, pulling her dagger out and handing it over.  
  
  
  
Enkidu started up the forge as Liz inspected the dagger. “You take good care of this.”  
  
  
  
“It’s my lifeline.” Silica replied, as if that explained everything, which it did.  
  
  
  
Liz nodded in understanding as she slid the dagger’s blade into the forge. “A friend of mine is really rough on his equipment, but he does take good care of it, and he’s got a repair kit that he uses to do his own maintenance. He only brings his sword to me if he can’t do the repair work himself.”  
  
  
  
“Who is that?” Yuuna asked curiously.  
  
  
  
Liz turned to look at her. “It’s Kirito, the [Commander] of the [Assault Team]. Not that the leaders of the DKB and ALS are willing to admit it.” She shrugged uncaringly, “It’s not that that really affects my business anyway.”  
  
  
  
“Hey, Liz.” A quiet, tired voice called out.  
  
  
  
Liz looked up, passed her three customers, “Oh, hey Asuna, what are you doing down here so soon after the Boss Raid?” She leaned forward. “I’d have thought that you and your hubby would have been exploring the fourteenth floor right now.”  
  
  
  
Asuna’s face went bright red. “Kirito-kun is _not_ my hubby!” she squawked, in denial. “As for the fourteenth floor, well…” The fifteen year old shook her head. “The main settlement, [Udātta Hōrāṭagāra] Is so over run by the mobs that the NPCs are gone and we can’t get to the [Teleport Pad] to activate it.”  
  
  
  
“And the Nile isn’t only a river in Egypt, you know.” Liz smirked, teasing Asuna was one of her favorite things to do! “Is this going to…” Liz trailed off, pulling Silica’s dagger from her forge.  
  
  
  
“No, we will not be stopped Liz.” Asuna’s cheeks went bright red before she shook her head, “Kirito-kun has gone to round up another raid group so that we can take [Udātta Hōrāṭagāra] back.”  
  
  
  
Yuuna had gone starry eyed, “Um, excuse me, are you…” She had not expected to meet one of the co leaders of the Assault Team, _ever_ really. The [Black Sun and White Moon] were her heroes.  
  
  
  
Asuna turned to the white haired girl, “Am I who?”  
  
  
  
“Are you the [White Moon]?” Yuuna was almost bursting at the seams in excitement.  
  
  
  
Asuna looked thoughtful for a moment, “How do you know that name?”  
  
  
  
Yuuna blushed, “I’ve read a lot about the [White Moon] and [Black Sun] in the ‘Daily Argo’…”  
  
  
  
“That… is something Argo would do,” Asuna sighed. She was going to have _words_ with that girl… “Yes, I am known as the [White Moon], though that’s just a name that Kirito-kun sometimes calls me.”  
  
  
  
“…Can I have your autograph?” Yuuna finally managed to get out hopefully.  
  
  
  
“What.” Asuna said.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito sighed as he looked around the bar, after being unable to even get to the [Teleport Pad] and seeing all the mobs in what should have been a [Safe Zone], he and Asuna had made a hasty retreat. While he was fairly certain that the mobs weren’t overly powerful on an individual basis, a quick glance had shown him that there were easily a hundred mobs inside the town.  
  
  
  
He was confident in his and Asuna’s skills, but there were limits to what the two of them could do. And he wasn’t going to chance them having to deal with respawns as well, in which case they would simply exhaust themselves for no appreciable gain.  
  
  
  
He would need to have a word with Aki about that and make sure that this was intended, rather than the result of the hacking attempt. Well, regardless, he’d need to gather a few other players. Perhaps two full parties to help get to the Teleport Pad.  
  
  
  
He really hoped that this would not be the pattern for the fourteenth floor. “This is going to suck…” Kirito muttered as he found Agil and his usual party in a corner. He got up from his seat. Best not put this off.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
“Mobs, in the main settlement.” Agil repeated, his voice full of disbelief.  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, “I don’t know if that’s going to be the theme of the floor or not, but Asuna and I won’t be able to take on all the Mobs that we saw when we were trying to get to the [Teleport Pad].” He shrugged, sighing. “We don’t know what the hacking attempt could have done to the respawn time of those mobs, or what the respawn time was originally, so Asuna and I decided that it was just better not to try our luck fighting them. There were over a hundred mobs in the settlement…” He frowned, “Or that’s how high I got before I lost count.” He admitted.  
  
  
  
One of Agil’s companions whistled, “Over a hundred mobs. I’d say calling it quits and retreating was a good call to make.”  
  
  
  
Kirito chuckled weakly, “Thanks.”  
  
  
  
The man slapped Kirito’s back a little harder than he should have, causing the fourteen year old to almost fall forward. “You can count on us, [Commander].”  
  
  
  
Kirito coughed slightly, “Thanks guys, can you spread the word? I need to go find Asuna.”  
  
  
  
“Go find your Wife, [Commander],” Agil teased with a wide grin.  
  
  
  
“…Not my wife…” Kirito muttered, blushing hotly as he turned to leave the bar.  
  
  
  
“Ok, she’s not your wife,” Agil called after him in agreement, much too cheerfully. “Yet.”  
  
  
  
Kirito picked his pace up, doing his best to ignore the laughter of the group following him out of the bar.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito slumped into his chair later that evening, “Why are they so mean…?” He asked himself more than Asuna as he watched his partner preparing their dinner.  
  
  
  
Asuna paused in adding ingredients to the pot in front of her, “What do you mean, Kirito-kun?” She asked, giving him a curious look.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s cheeks flushed and he refused to look at his partner. “Agil and his guys were calling you my wife.” He looked at her through his bangs shyly, “I told them you weren’t of course…” But, he couldn’t help seeing her in a white, western style dress. They were too young to be thinking this way!  
  
  
  
It was Asuna’s turn to blush and she looked down into the pot. “Liz called you my hubby when I saw her earlier.” Then she laughed, “Oh, and, someone asked me for my autograph! What is SAO coming to?” She shook her head in amusement.  
  
  
  
“What.” Kirito muttered. Why had someone asked his partner for her autograph? She wasn’t that well known, was she?  
  
  
  
“That was my reaction,” Asuna agreed, “Apparently; Argo has been calling us [White Moon] and [Black Sun] in the ‘Daily Argo’.”  
  
  
  
“We really need to talk to her about that, don’t we?” Kirito asked with a sigh as Asuna finished preparing their dinner and put the pot in the oven. He let his head land on the countertop with a soft thud.  
  
  
  
“Not we,” Asuna replied, sitting across from him. “You do, she’s your direct subordinate.”  
  
  
  
“I’m no leader Asuna…” Kirito muttered, looking down at his folded hands.  
  
  
  
“You are.” Asuna stared at him, “I agree with your brother. You are a very talented leader. You just need to have more confidence in yourself.”  
  
  
  
Kirito blinked, looking up at her, “Asuna… hime…” he breathed, blushing. “I wish I had your confidence.” He admitted, his shoulders slumping.  
  
  
  
Asuna reached out and placed her hand on top of one of his, “I know that this is something you struggle with.” She leaned against him, “It’s ok to not like being crowded, it’s ok to not enjoy being the center of attention. I don’t like it either. But it is something we are going to have to learn to deal with. Because your brother put us in the spotlight. And now we have to adapt.”  
  
  
  
“Sink or swim huh?” Kirito mused weakly, “Damn, Aki sure knows how to get us moving…” He gave a long suffering sigh.  
  
  
  
“Together, we can do anything, Kirito-kun.” Asuna reminded him, giving him a weak smile of her own.  
  
  
  
“Un. We can.” Kirito agreed, his eyes once again bright with determination. “Nothing will stop us, not now, not ever.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kayaba sighed as he finally managed to completely isolate the worm that was attacking his simulation, his assistant. Now he just had to delete the damned thing.  
  
  
  
He sat back in his chair and looked to the young AI resting on the small bed. They’d found it, they’d found it fast enough that there shouldn’t be any permanent damage to any of the systems. And once the worm was gone completely he’d be able to go back into the game. Finding and fixing all the Glitch Zones would take some more time, but Kayaba was sure that he and his brother could handle that.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito stood with his back to the open doors of the thirteenth floor’s boss room. “Thank you for coming. Now, the Boss of this floor has been defeated, but we find yet another hurdle that we must somehow get over.” He took a deep, steadying breath, “The main settlement of the fourteenth floor has been overrun by so many mobs that it is impossible to reach the [Teleport Pad]. Normally Asuna and I have no trouble finding and activating it.”  
  
  
  
Everyone was silent, but they all noticed when Asuna took Kirito’s hand and gave it a squeeze. They’d all noticed the heavy cloaks the pair of partners were wearing.  
  
  
  
“We do not know how many mobs are infesting the settlement,” Kirito continued. “I lost count at a little over one hundred.” Kirito sent Kibaou a glare to keep him silent. “Asuna-hime and I might be among the strongest players in this game, but not even we can deal with those numbers.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
For the second time, the doors to the fourteenth floor were pushed open and several parties of six players spilled out. Kirito and Asuna stepping out last.  
  
  
  
Every single person was decked out in heavy winter cloaks. “You’ve gotten quite good at making clothes, Asuna-hime. My cloak is nice and warm.”  
  
  
  
“Compliment my domestic skills later, Kirito-kun.” Asuna reprimanded, “We are here to free [Udātta Hōrāṭagāra] from the mobs. Maybe once all the mobs are gone, the NPCs will return.”  
  
  
  
Kirito studiously ignored the snickering that rose up from everyone else. He rolled his eyes, “I know, [Princess].”  
  
  
  
Beryl snickered from where she was standing with Persephone and Argo. “The [Commander] is whipped and doesn’t even know it…” the redhead shook her head. “We bet they’d be married by the twenty second floor, right?”  
  
  
  
Argo nodded, “That was your bet.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Lind and Kibaou were amazed at how many mobs there were in the settlement. “And Kirito said he lost count after just over a hundred?” Lind whistled, he was impressed that the kid had been able to keep count that long.  
  
  
  
“I’d say it’s more like three to four times that…” Kibaou said in a very rare moment of agreement.  
  
  
  
“You see why we wanted help?” Kirito asked from behind them.  
  
  
  
“…Somehow, I don’t think we have enough people…” Lind muttered.  
  
  
  
“We still have to try.” Asuna said from behind him.  
  
  
  
Lind turned to her. “Yeah. We still have to try…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito struck what had to be the fiftieth mob in the last half hour. When the mob shattered he took a moment to look over the battlefield. The battle was going better than he could have expected with Lind and Kibaou in the same place. He didn’t dare check his map, but Kirito was pretty sure that they were all closing in on the [Teleport Plaza] in the center of the Settlement.  
  
  
  
No NPCs had been spotted, but then again, with all the mobs around, and the seemingly ruined architecture it was by no means a surprise. Hopefully there would be an NPC _somewhere_ to explain what was going on…  
  
  
  
Kirito activated his [Searching] skill and immediately found his partner in the middle of fighting several mobs. But if she wasn’t careful, she’d be overwhelmed. He should go help her.


	39. Mars: The Floor of War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mars: Where it's really cold. Good thing there is so much fighting, with any luck, no one will notice how cold it is.

It was a little over an hour later when they reached the [Teleport Plaza]. “Someone else activate the [Teleport Pad],” Kirito said, concentrating on breathing deeply. “Asuna-hime and I are going to grab a tent and take a nap.” He paused, turning to Lind and Kibaou, “If you wake us with an argument, _you will regret it_.”  
  
  
  
Kibaou nodded almost fearfully but Lind’s reaction was surprising.  
  
  
  
“Understood, [Commander].” Lind gave them a salute before turning to the members of the DKB that he’d brought with him and began issuing quiet orders.  
  
  
  
Asuna yelped quietly as Kirito took her wrist and pulled her into one of the smaller tents. There was a cot in one corner, it looked like they’d barely fit on it if they snuggled really close. In another, there was what looked like a place for a camping stove and in the center, there was a small table, just big enough for two people to eat at or to look over maps.  
  
  
  
Kirito groaned as he sat on the cot, “I hate fighting for an extended period of time.” He resisted the urge to yawn.  
  
  
  
“But don’t we do that all the time when Grinding?” Asuna asked softly, sitting next to him.  
  
  
  
“There’s Grinding, and then there is actual battle.” Kirito huffed. “Sure, there’s no distinction on the surface but there is actually a difference.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “For one thing, when out grinding, we can always, at any time, decide to stop and eat or return to wherever we’ve based ourselves out of. In an actual battle, you can’t do that.”  
  
  
  
“But isn’t this a game?” Asuna wondered, leaning into his side tiredly. Here eyes were closed and she looked ready to drop off to sleep.  
  
  
  
“It’s not a game if our lives are on the line, Asuna-hime.” Kirito replied gently, stroking her hair softly. Together, they fell back onto the cot to take that much needed nap.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Agil looked into the tent before tying it closed. “Ok, the [Commander] and Asuna are asleep. We need to decide how things are going to be set up for when they rejoin us. Any ideas?”  
  
  
  
Lind looked at all the tents, “Well, I don’t see any NPCs to explain the situation to us. But I suggest that we make the biggest tent here HQ for Operations.”  
  
  
  
“I think we should move them into a different tent when they get up.” Beryl smirked.  
  
  
  
“Now Beryl, let’s check to see if Lind’s suggestion will work before moving the [Black Sun] and [White Moon] around.” Persephone chided, poking her older friend’s shoulder.  
  
  
  
“Fine,” Beryl agreed, her smirk never changing.  
  
  
  
Entering the largest tent, the players noticed that there were several tables scattered around, some with maps of the settlement strewn across their surfaces. There were chairs scattered around, and a canvas wall hiding another part of the tent.  
  
  
  
In a corner near the flap, there was a box full of what looked to be headsets. Curiously, Lind picked one up to take a closer look. It was small, and would fit in the ear. There was a piece that fit behind the ear, with two buttons on top for volume control and one on the underside that would turn the device on and off.  
  
  
  
On a smaller side table, there seemed to be a radio set up. Or, that’s what it _looked_ like. Who knew what it actually was…  
  
  
  
Lind looked from the headset in his hands to the radio for a moment then sighed. “Looks like we are in it for the long haul…” He had a feeling that he was going to hate this floor.  
  
  
  
“What are these things even for?” Kibaou asked, picking up a headset himself.  
  
  
  
Beryl picked one up and put it on. “I want to know if they’ll work outside the floor, personally.” She shot a look at Heathcliff, who simply gave her a secretive smile. She would get no help from him apparently. She sent him a glare.  
  
  
  
His smile only widened.  
  
  
  
Persephone took one and then tossed another to Argo. “I suggest we all take one before looking at those maps, it should make it easier to coordinate our defense.” She secured hers to her ear.  
  
  
  
Lind picked up a second after attaching the one he was holding to his ear and threw it to his second. Pretty soon everyone but Kirito and Asuna had one, and that was because they were somewhere else, resting.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Lind was checking his map an hour later when he noticed the red dots of mobs appearing on the edge of the space that was designated as the main settlement. “Looks like we aren’t done,” he muttered with a grimace, “Oi, Shivata.”  
  
  
  
“Yes Boss?” the man asked, looking up from checking his equipment.  
  
  
  
“Are the [Commander] and the [Princess] up yet?” Lind blinked. “What.”  
  
  
  
“Who’s the [Princess]?” Shivata asked in confusion.  
  
  
  
“I was going to say A-[Princess].” Lind blinked again. “What. The. Hell.”  
  
  
  
No one noticed Heathcliff step out of the tent after picking up two extra headsets. His shoulders were trembling slightly in suppressed amusement at the slight glitch that was forcing the other players to address Kirito and Asuna by their proper stations.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Heathcliff poked his head into the tiny tent that Kirito had claimed for himself and Asuna, at least for the time being. Seeing that the two were still sound asleep, he stepped lightly, with quiet feet (despite being in full armor, something he’d learned from the actual Heathcliff’s memories) and set the two headsets he’d brought with him on the table. “You two must have been very tired…” He chuckled in soundless amusement, “But your training needs to begin, and what better time than now?” Better that they learn the lesson down here where it was relatively safe rather than after Aincrad stopped taking it easy on them all.  
  
  
  
His brother and Asuna were bound to hate him for this, but they’d get over it. Heathcliff bent down and shook Kirito’s shoulder gently.  
  
  
  
One slightly glassy, very familiar, gold speckled ebony eye opened in a glare. “What do you want, Aki?” Kirito hissed dangerously.  
  
  
  
“Time to get up, little brother. I have much to teach both you and our [Princess].” Heathcliff whispered.  
  
  
  
Kirito’s other eye opened, his glare intensifying as one of his hands curled around one of Asuna’s shoulders.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff sighed. “I am trying to build an army,” he reminded the teen, “Part of that is being able to function on little to no sleep.” He flicked his younger brother’s nosegently. “I can’t be soft on you if you are to replace who I was.”  
  
  
  
Kirito grimaced as he turned away from his older brother, resting his forehead against his partner’s. “Asuna, Asuna-hime, we need to get up now.” He may not know anything about being in the military, but from what Kizmel had let slip about how training was conducted, this was his brother was being _nice_.  
  
  
  
Asuna grumbled under her breath, snuggling even closer for a moment before opening one eye. “Whoever is trying to get us up can go get screwed by a Mob.” She closed her eye and turned her head so that Kirito was casting a shadow as she tried to get back to sleep.  
  
  
  
Kirito snorted in amusement, chuckling. “Well, I think you heard our [Sovereign] Big Brother, so go away.” If he could get away with it, even just this once, he’d be very happy. He didn’t like having his sleep interrupted either. He settled himself again and closed his eyes to get some more sleep.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff sighed, his eye twitching in very slight annoyance but also amusement as he watched his brother’s breathing even out again. “I didn’t want to have to do this Kazu, but you and Asuna leave me no choice…”  
  
  
  
Kneeling, Heathcliff smirked as he put his hands under the cot and lifted, tossing the two younger Players onto the ground. “Up. Now. This is no game, remember?”  
  
  
  
Kirito gave his brother another glare from where he’d landed on his back, Asuna on top of him. “I really didn’t think that would work anyway…” He grumbled unhappily. Great, training. Just what he wanted!  
  
  
  
Asuna never said a word; she just glared angrily up at his brother. “Heathcliff, you have three seconds to run before I kill you.”  
  
  
  
Kirito shivered, her tone of voice sending ice down his spine. “Aki, I suggest you obey.”  
  
  
  
Heathcliff looked at Kirito in confusion.  
  
  
  
“One,” Asuna growled.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff grinned suddenly. While his brother might know that he was an admin, Kirito didn’t know about his immortality. Yet. He’d take Asuna’s rage, because she was the [Princess], but also because he needed to show her how serious this was. He was going to be training her, and his younger brother to be military leaders.  
  
  
  
They had to be able to do what was needed, whether they were fully rested or not. Heathcliff had had to deal with a reluctant Serenity when she had gotten the basics down.  
  
  
  
Asuna, unlike Serenity, had a solid grounding in her style and had already performed well under the conditions that Heathcliff was forcing on her and his brother.  
  
  
  
Of course, they’d both crashed after the battle at Moonrise had finished, but that was what Heathcliff wanted to teach them to push through. And really, Kizmel _should_ have woken them both to deal with the After Action Reports and the assessment of the village’s defenses.  
  
  
  
But she hadn’t, and it was moot now. So he was the one who would have to deal with it. Heathcliff was actually looking forward to it. If he’d known it was really Kizmel… but that was water under the bridge, there was no use contemplating ‘what ifs’.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Asuna’s eyes were blazing in anger as she stalked into the tent that housed the Base of Operations. “Someone tell me what’s been going on _now_!” she spat, still angry at Heathcliff for waking her from her nap.  
  
  
  
Kirito followed her a moment later, sullen and glaring over his shoulder. “No need to take your anger out on the others, Asuna-hime. Save it for the one who deserves your ire dear.”  
  
  
  
He didn’t flinch when Asuna turned her eyes to him, “Really?” She asked icily.  
  
  
  
“We’ll get him back,” Kirito reassured her with an evil grin. “But he _did_ try to be nice, remember?”  
  
  
  
Asuna pouted, “Fine.” She dragged the word out a little and everyone else in the tent, who’d been holding their breaths let out a collective sigh of relief.  
  
  
  
“Lind, do you or anyone else have an update for us?” Kirito asked, turning his gaze to the leader of the DKB.  
  
  
  
“Not long after you left to take a nap, which you both obviously still need,” Lind replied, turning narrow eyes to the grinning Heathcliff that had followed them in. “Mobs started probing the edges of the [Safe Zone]. We’ve been sending teams and scouts to keep them out, but that’s not going to work for long.”  
  
  
  
“We need to find out where the damned things are coming from…” Kibaou grumbled, not meeting Kirito’s sharp gaze. “What’s up with this [Safe Zone] not being safe anyway?”  
  
  
  
Kirito turned his gaze to the maps on the table as he secured the headset his older brother had given him before they’d arrived to his ear. “Ok, tell me what I’m looking at.” he ordered, his scarf glowing only faintly under his cloak.  
  
  
  
Lind launching into an explanation that Kirito was quite sure he only understood half of. In the end, Kirito simply nodded. “And do we have anyone scouting outside the settlement to find out where the mobs are coming from?” He asked the room as he studied the map.  
  
  
  
“Not at the moment.” Shivata reported simply. “That was the next thing on our list of things to do actually.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded, gazing down at the map thoughtfully. There had to be something they could do.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Beryl lay on the crest of the red hill, putting her [Perception] skill to good use. Her eyes narrowed as her sight zoomed in on the camp that was maybe half an hour’s walk from the main settlement. “I think I’ve found what we are looking for…” she muttered, pressing the button on her headset that would turn it on. “I still wish we had binoculars…” She grumbled.  
  
  
  
“Report.” Kirito’s voice snapped in her ear.  
  
  
  
“I think I’ve found our problem [Commander],” she replied, paying Kirito’s irritation no mind. He wanted to be out here helping her. So did Asuna. But Beryl had understood why Heathcliff had kept them both back at Central. “Preliminary results have the respawn area being a short distance from where you are. First count… is upwards of two hundred mobs and groups of up to fifty leaving in half hour intervals.” Beryl winced when she heard him curse. “And that was when I lost count. Sorry [Commander].” she apologized.  
  
  
  
“We can worry about that later, I believe.” Kirito’s voice said softly with a sigh. “Return to base, we now have the information we need.”  
  
  
  
“Yes sir,” Beryl replied, briefly looking back to the enemy camp before obeying Kirito’s order. Even from here she could see that the mobs were huge hulking masses of muscle, much like the native life on Mars had actually been. They were slow and hit hard. And worse… they had a lot of health to go with it.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito was rearranging the maps on the table when Beryl entered the tent ten minutes later. They could now see a map of the whole floor. “Ok, Beryl, can you mark where you found this camp of Mobs?”  
  
  
  
Beryl picked up one of the red markers, “The camp is here.” She said, putting it down a short distance away from where Kirito had marked where the main settlement was. “And it was packed.”  
  
  
  
Kirito hissed, “We’re going to have to destroy it if we want to be able to leave and explore the rest of the Floor…” He looked thoughtful for a moment. “Asuna-hime…”  
  
  
  
Asuna shook her head after a moment, “I don’t have anything to add at the moment.” She turned an icy glare on Heathcliff. “If I was allowed to actually see this place with my own eyes I might have some idea of what we should do.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded; ignoring the glare she was giving Heathcliff. “Ok, we’re going to need to send out more scouting parties I suppose. I would have liked it better if Asuna and I were allowed to be on the ground ourselves but…”  
  
  
  
Kibaou huffed, he may be keeping his silence, but he didn’t believe a word the [Beater] was saying.  
  
  
  
Kirito took a deep breath, “Lind, can you and Kibaou coordinate the scouting parties.”  
  
  
  
“I will certainly try, [Commander],” Lind replied.  
  
  
  
“Beryl, do you think that you and Persephone can handle the rest of the Clearers that are down in [Atlantis]?” Kirito asked, turning to the redhead. “We need to get some kind of system running that will allow us to rotate some people out so that everyone can get the rest we all need.”  
  
  
  
Beryl and Persephone shared a grin. “Yes sir, we’ll get right on that.”  
  
  
  
Kirito nodded as he turned his gaze back to the maps. “In that case, everyone but Heathcliff are dismissed.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito turned to look up at his brother after everyone but Asuna had left. “When are you going to allow us to rest?” he asked pleadingly, finally letting weariness show through with a sigh. He finally allowed himself to slump against the table since only his brother and Asuna were there to witness it as he closed his eyes.  
  
  
  
“Kazu, you should know better.” Heathcliff replied, he was more amused by his brother’s pleading than anything else. But he would take pity on them, just this once.  
  
  
  
Kirito grimaced. “Oh, right. Forgive me, _sir_.” he growled sarcastically. “May Asuna-hime and I get the rest we need?” He made sure to be as formal as he could.  
  
  
  
Heathcliff chuckled, pulling open the canvas wall that everyone had thus far ignored. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” he advised, pushing both players into the space beyond and let the wall fall closed.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Kirito glared at where Heathcliff disappeared. “I didn’t realize that Aki was going to be such a damned Troll…” he muttered, turning to look at what was in this part of the tent. He yawned widely, not quite managing to cover his mouth with a hand as his weariness caught up with him again.  
  
  
  
This part of the tent was set up much like the one he and Asuna had crashed in earlier. The cot in the corner was big enough that they wouldn’t strictly _need_ to cuddle to fit on it and there was a place for their camping stove and a small table. There was little else. But that was fine; he and Asuna didn’t _need_ anything else, just a place to sleep for a few hours.  
  
  
  
Asuna had already fallen onto the cot. “Why is my Pillow not joining me?” She gave Kirito a dangerous look.  
  
  
  
“Just taking stock of what is here.” He reassured her as he sat on the cot next to her and then lay down. “I think we’ve been up too long…” Resting his head on one arm, he closed his eyes and let his breathing even out.  
  
  
  
Asuna chuckled soundlessly as she snuggled into Kirito’s side, resting her head on his chest. She let the rhythm of his breathing lull her to sleep. Maybe this time, their sleep wouldn’t be interrupted by anyone.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Heathcliff smiled as he turned away from where his brother and [Princess] were hidden from sight. Making sure that no one was watching, he materialized a [Teleport Crystal] and disappeared from the fourteenth floor.  
  
  
  
He needed to check on Cardinal. Kirito should be able to handle any [Glitch Zones] that appeared on the floor.  
  
  
  
Reappearing in the Game Master’s Domain, he swept his eyes over the walls. Good, no more Error Messages had popped up. Kayaba turned to the bed, to see Cardinal looking positively miserable. “Are you feeling any better, Cardinal-chan?” he asked.  
  
  
  
“Well, I’m not feeling any worse…” the young AI replied weakly. “That’s good, right?”  
  
  
  
“Yes, that’s very good, that means Kirito was able to isolate the entirety of the worm that infected you and the Simulation.” Kayaba pet her hair the way he used to pet his brother’s when they were younger, before the accident that had killed their parents. “All that’s left to do is to delete the thing and fix the damage it managed to do before we got to it.”  
  
  
  
“But that means that _all the floors_ could be affected somehow!” Cardinal tried to get up but couldn’t as her avatar’s frame was wracked by a coughing fit.  
  
  
  
Kayaba sat down at his station and pulled up Cardinal’s base code. He didn’t like seeing his assistant in a state such as this. “I know, Kirito and I will handle it while you are recovering.”  
  
  
  
Cardinal pouted, “I hate feeling useless…”  
  
  
  
At least he knew that the Players would be safe with his younger brother troubleshooting in the game proper while he worked to fix Cardinal herself. That meant that he could concentrate on fixing her, and hopefully, he’d be able to return to playing, and gathering Players for his Guild that much faster.  
  
  
  
Kayaba pulled up what his brother had earmarked as the worm and deleted it. He was tempted to look at its code and see if there were any markers that would hint at who it was that had made it, but decided against it. He then took a moment to make sure that the worm was completely gone from the system and then turned his attention to debugging Cardinal’s base coding. Once this was finished, he could work with his brother in the simulation proper and fix any issues that might crop up.  
  
  
  
Cardinal came first, if she crashed, then Sword Art Online also would. Likely within moments of Cardinal crashing.  
  
  
  
And with Zoicite’s curse hanging over them, well, there was a good chance that most players would end up crippled for the rest of their lives. If not dead.


End file.
